Waist-hip ratio

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Waist-hip ratio or Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) is the ratio of the circumference of the waist to that of the hips. It measures the proportion by which fat is distributed around the torso. The concept and significance of WHR was first theorized by evolutionary psychologist Dr. Devendra Singh at the University of Texas at Austin in 1993. ^[1]

Contents 1 Measuring 2 Health 3 Attractiveness 4 Artificial alteration 5 See also 6 References

[edit] Measuring

To calculate the ratio, use a non-stretchable tape. Make sure it is level around the body, parallel to the floor, and tighten it without depressing the skin. Measure the waist at its narrowest point width-wise, usually just above the belly button. Measure the hips around the widest part of the hip bones. Then divide the waist measurement by the hip measurement.

[edit] Health

A WHR of 0.7 for women and 0.9 for men have been shown to correlate strongly with general health and fertility.^{[citation needed]} Women within the 0.7 range have optimal levels of estrogen and are less susceptible to major diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disorders and ovarian cancers.^{[citation needed]} Men with WHRs around 0.9, similarly, have been shown to be more healthy and fertile with less prostate cancer and testicular cancer.^{[citation needed]}

WHR is a better measure of assessing a person’s risk of heart attack than Body mass index (BMI)^[2]. If obesity is redefined using WHR instead of BMI, the proportion of people at risk of heart attack worldwide increases threefold.^[3]

[edit] Attractiveness

WHR is considered to be factor in a person's attractiveness. Devendra Singh originally argued that, on evolutionary grounds, men would find women with .70 WHRs more attractive. He argued this based on a study of the WHRs of Playboy models. However, later research found that his study was incorrect.^[4]

Women with a 0.7 WHR (waist circumference being 70% of the hip circumference) are sometimes rated as more attractive by men.^[5][6] Such diverse beauty icons as Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, and even the Venus de Milo all have ratios around 0.7, even though they have significantly different weights.

[edit] Artificial alteration

Many methods have been used to artificially alter a person's apparent WHR. These include corsets used to reduce the waist size and hip and buttock padding used by cross-dressers to increase the apparent size of the hips and buttocks.

[edit] See also

• Sexual attraction
• Physical attractiveness
• Body Mass Index
• Human figure

[edit] References

1. ↑ "Adaptive significance of female physical attractiveness: Role of waist-to-hip ratio." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65
2. ↑ American Journal of Clinical Nutrition August 12,2006
3. ↑ Obesity and the risk of myocardial infarction in 27,000 participants from 52 countries: a case-control study. The Lancet, Nov. 5th 2005
4. ↑ http://jeremyfreese.com/docs/FreeseMeland%20-%20SevenTenthsIncorrect.pdf
5. ↑ http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/AttractiveBody.html
6. ↑ http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~hbe-lab/acrobatfiles/profilewhr.pdf

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This page uses content from the English-language version of Wikipedia. The original article was at Waist-hip ratio. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Psychology Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.