BMI 27 or 30: what a prescription depends on
From a BMI of 30, medicated weight treatment is licensed. Between 27 and 30, only with a weight-related condition. What counts, and who decides.
- Eligibility
Quick answer
The licence for these medicines is tied to BMI: from 30 in principle, and between 27 and 30 only together with at least one weight-related condition.
Which conditions count is listed in the licence by way of example and not exhaustively. Whether a prescription is possible is therefore always assessed by a doctor — not by a calculator and not by a questionnaire.
How BMI is calculated
BMI is weight divided by height squared. It is a crude measure and does not distinguish muscle from fat — for muscular men it therefore reads too high.
That is precisely why it never stands alone in a clinical assessment. Waist circumference, existing conditions, current medication and history all belong with it.
If you narrowly miss the threshold
Missing the threshold narrowly leaves you without this option, not without options. That is a question of licensing, not of how seriously your concern is taken.
Having a condition and not declaring it only defers the problem: the doctor then cannot assess safely, and assessing safely is what the questionnaire is for.
Frequently asked questions
Sources and medical review
Based on European Medicines Agency product information, the manufacturers' prescribing information and professional society guidance on obesity. This article is educational and does not replace individual medical advice.
- European Medicines Agency product information
- Manufacturers' prescribing information
- Professional society guidance on obesity