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BMI is a formula that doctors use to estimate how much body fat a person has based on his or her weight and height.

Although you can calculate BMI on your own, it's a good idea to ask your doctor, school nurse, or fitness counselor to help you figure out what it means. That's because a doctor can do more than just use BMI to assess a person's current weight. He or she can take into account where a girl or guy is during puberty and use BMI results from past years to track whether that person may be at risk for becoming overweight.

People who are overweight as teens increase their risk of developing health problems, such as diabetes and high blood pressure

other serious health conditions, such as heart disease.

a doctor should help you decide

Heredity plays a role in body shape and what a person weighs. People from different races, ethnic groups, and nationalities tend to have different body fat distribution (meaning they accumulate fat in different parts of their bodies) or body composition (amounts of bone and muscle versus fat).

If your family eats a lot of high-fat foods or snacks or doesn't get much exercise, you may tend to do the same. The good news is these habits can be changed for the better.