Perspective Chapter: Beyond BMI – Rethinking Obesity Assessment in Women's Health

The chapter critiques the reliance on BMI for assessing obesity in women's health, highlighting its limitations in differentiating fat from lean mass and its insensitivity to fat distribution and hormonal changes. It advocates for a multidimensional approach that includes alternative tools like waist-to-hip ratio, body fat percentage, and imaging modalities such as DEXA, MRI, and CT scans, which provide more precise evaluations of visceral fat and metabolic health. These tools are better suited to address the unique physiological and hormonal changes women experience across different life stages, such as adolescence, pregnancy, and menopause. The chapter calls for integrating advanced diagnostics and biomarkers into clinical practice to improve outcomes in gynecology, reproductive medicine, and preventive care, aligning with precision medicine and sex-specific healthcare needs.