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Average Weight By Age
Determining Factors
Ideal Body Weight
The average weight for women is different based on a number of factors. An average weight for a group of people doesn’t indicate what might be healthiest. An ideal body weight for health is a highly individualized topic.
This article will discuss some of the factors that affect weight, and the average weight for women in the United States and how it is different between ethnicities.
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A Note on Gender and Sex TerminologyVerywell Health acknowledges thatsex and genderare related concepts, but they are not the same. To reflect our sources accurately, this article uses terms like “female,” “male,” “woman,” and “man” as the sources use them.
A Note on Gender and Sex Terminology
Verywell Health acknowledges thatsex and genderare related concepts, but they are not the same. To reflect our sources accurately, this article uses terms like “female,” “male,” “woman,” and “man” as the sources use them.
Average Weight for Women of Different Ages
Factors That Determine Weight Averages in Women
Weight is highly individualized. Some of the factors that influence a person’s weight are genetic predisposition, height, and muscle composition.People who are taller and who have more muscle mass (such as those who are athletes) may weigh more. Ethnicity is another factor that may influence a person’s weight.
An average weight sample that’s taken from a large sample of women provides a starting point for understanding how one’s own weight places in relation. However, it doesn’t offer much help as to what a healthy weight looks like for any one person.
People who want to understand what their own weight means in terms of health should contact a healthcare provider.
How Much Weight Fluctuation Is Normal?
Average Female Weight in America vs. Other Countries
Availability of calories, protein, and health care are other factors that can have an effect on weight.Across the world, these factors are highly variable for a number of reasons.
The average weight of an adult may change in geographic regions that are experiencing scarcity in these factors. Trends in average adult weight in various geographic areas may also be observed over decades as the circumstances affecting weight change over time.
Here is the average weight for adult females in several different countries:
How to Get to an Ideal Weight for Your Body
A person’s ideal weight is individualized and changes over time. The goal should be a weight thatsupports health, rather than trying to achieve a particular weight for other reasons. Some measures might be used todetermine an ideal weight, though it’s also understood that these metrics (such asBMI) are imperfect.
Height and wrist circumference are two measurements that are used to determine body frame size. An ideal weight then might be different for a person with a small frame size (wrist size less than 5.5 inches and height under 5 feet, 2 inches) versus one with a large frame size (wrist size over 6.5 inches and height over 5 feet, 5 inches).
Muscle mass affects weight because muscle is more dense than fat, so muscle weighs more than the same volume of fat. (However, 10 pounds of muscle will look leaner than 10 pounds of fat.) The normalbody fat percentagefor women is between 25% and 30%, with more than 30% body fat percentage denotingobesity.
Measures you could take to affect your weight include:
Getting to an ideal weight is an individual process that could mean having discussions with your healthcare team and looking at the averages and measurements available for reference.
BMI is a dated, flawed measure. It does not take into account factors such asbody composition, ethnicity, sex, race, and age. Even though it is a biased measure, BMI is still widely used in the medical community because it’s an inexpensive and quick way to analyze a person’s potential health status and outcomes.
Summary
6 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Fryar CD, Carroll MD, Gu Q, Afful J, Ogden CL.Anthropometric reference data for children and adults: United States, 2015–2018. National Center for Health Statistics.Vital Health Stat. 2021;3:46.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Body mass index: considerations for practitioners.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Factors affecting weight and health.
MedlinePlus.Calculating body frame size.
Penn Medicine.Obesity facts, definition, and statistics.
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