What is a concern associated with using BMI to assess athletes who have high lean body mass?

Using Body Mass Index (BMI) to assess athletes who have high lean body mass can lead to misclassifications due to the formula's reliance on height and weight without considering muscle mass specifically. Athletes often have a higher proportion of muscle compared to the general population, resulting in greater overall weight, which does not necessarily correlate with excess body fat.

As a result, such athletes can be inaccurately categorized as obese according to BMI calculations. This can create significant concerns, including misinterpretation of health status and possibly inappropriate recommendations regarding weight management. BMI does not distinguish between fat and muscle; therefore, an athlete with a high level of fitness and muscle may register a high weight for their height, leading the index to designate them as obese despite their actual body composition being healthy. This highlights the importance of using more comprehensive assessment tools for athletes, such as body composition analysis, rather than solely relying on BMI indexes.