In the latest study to question the usefulness of the body mass index, researchers have found that the percentage of one’s body fat is a better predictor of future death than BMI.

“Body mass index has no statistically significant relationship with all-cause mortality,” the University of Florida team reports in the July edition of the journal Annals of Family Medicine.

Instead, the researchers found that adults with a high body-fat percentage were nearly twice as likely to die from any cause over 15 years than those with a healthy body fat range, and more than three times likely to die from heart disease.

By contrast, a BMI indicating overweight or higher wasn’t associated with a statistically significant higher risk of death from any cause.

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