Waist-to-height ratio may be a better predictor of disease than body mass index.
Waist Circumference Less than Half Your Height
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Body mass index is a better predictor of disease than body weight, since it takes height into account. But, it doesn’t say what or where that mass is.
Bodybuilders can have huge BMIs, especially since muscle is heavier than fat. It doesn’t mean they’re obese.
It’s now accepted that health risks can be determined as much by the relative distribution of the excess fat, as by its total amount. It’s not so much body fat, but visceral body fat, abdominal fat, the fat around our internal organs, that most increases our risk of dying prematurely.
All these women have the exact same BMI, but it’s the people with this so-called apple shape that tend to live the shortest. Now, waist circumference takes care of both the what and where of the weight, but can also be affected by height. Enter the waist-to-height ratio. Move over BMI; now we have WHR.
“A systematic review of waist-to-height ratio as a screening tool for the prediction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes” was recently published—the first of its kind, concluding WHR was superior, and the cut-off should be one to two, “supporting the simple public health message: keep your waist circumference to less than half your height.”
It’s cheaper, more convenient (no scale required), and most importantly, more sensitive, as an early warning sign of health risks to come.
You just take a cloth measuring tape, and measure halfway between the top of your hip bones, and the bottom of your ribcage. Stand up straight, but breathe deep; exhale, let it all hang out, and that measurement should be half your height.
And, if it’s not, we should cut down on our consumption of meat, as we just went over, but also our consumption of refined plant foods—whereas at least three servings a day of whole grains was recently associated with a slimmer waist in the Framingham Heart Study.
To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by Kerry Skinner.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Browning LM, Hsieh SD, Ashwell M. A systematic review of waist-to-height ratio as a screening tool for the prediction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes: 0·5 could be a suitable global boundary value. Nutr Res Rev. 2010 Dec;23(2):247-69.
- Leitzmann MF, Moore SC, Koster A, Harris TB, Park Y, Hollenbeck A, Schatzkin A. Waist circumference as compared with body-mass index in predicting mortality from specific causes. PLoS One. 2011 Apr 26;6(4):e18582.
- Chang SH, Beason TS, Hunleth JM, Colditz GA. A systematic review of body fat distribution and mortality in older people. Maturitas. 2012 May 15.
Images thanks to InvictaHOG; BotMultichillT; and Richard2902 via Wikimedia Commons
Body mass index is a better predictor of disease than body weight, since it takes height into account. But, it doesn’t say what or where that mass is.
Bodybuilders can have huge BMIs, especially since muscle is heavier than fat. It doesn’t mean they’re obese.
It’s now accepted that health risks can be determined as much by the relative distribution of the excess fat, as by its total amount. It’s not so much body fat, but visceral body fat, abdominal fat, the fat around our internal organs, that most increases our risk of dying prematurely.
All these women have the exact same BMI, but it’s the people with this so-called apple shape that tend to live the shortest. Now, waist circumference takes care of both the what and where of the weight, but can also be affected by height. Enter the waist-to-height ratio. Move over BMI; now we have WHR.
“A systematic review of waist-to-height ratio as a screening tool for the prediction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes” was recently published—the first of its kind, concluding WHR was superior, and the cut-off should be one to two, “supporting the simple public health message: keep your waist circumference to less than half your height.”
It’s cheaper, more convenient (no scale required), and most importantly, more sensitive, as an early warning sign of health risks to come.
You just take a cloth measuring tape, and measure halfway between the top of your hip bones, and the bottom of your ribcage. Stand up straight, but breathe deep; exhale, let it all hang out, and that measurement should be half your height.
And, if it’s not, we should cut down on our consumption of meat, as we just went over, but also our consumption of refined plant foods—whereas at least three servings a day of whole grains was recently associated with a slimmer waist in the Framingham Heart Study.
To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by Kerry Skinner.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Browning LM, Hsieh SD, Ashwell M. A systematic review of waist-to-height ratio as a screening tool for the prediction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes: 0·5 could be a suitable global boundary value. Nutr Res Rev. 2010 Dec;23(2):247-69.
- Leitzmann MF, Moore SC, Koster A, Harris TB, Park Y, Hollenbeck A, Schatzkin A. Waist circumference as compared with body-mass index in predicting mortality from specific causes. PLoS One. 2011 Apr 26;6(4):e18582.
- Chang SH, Beason TS, Hunleth JM, Colditz GA. A systematic review of body fat distribution and mortality in older people. Maturitas. 2012 May 15.
Images thanks to InvictaHOG; BotMultichillT; and Richard2902 via Wikimedia Commons
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Waist Circumference Less than Half Your Height
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Content URLDoctor's Note
The relationship between meat and weight gain was covered in Meat and Weight Gain in the PANACEA Study (along with a response from the meat industry, Cattlemen’s Association Has Beef With Study). I have many other videos on body fat, as well as videos on thousands of other topics.
For more context, be sure to check out my associated blog posts: Diet vs. Exercise: What’s More Important? and Diet and Cellulite.
You might also be interested in my 2019 series. Check out:
- The 3,500 Calorie per Pound Rule Is Wrong
- The Reason Weight Loss Plateaus When You Diet
- The New Calories Per Pound of Weight Loss Rule
Stay up to date with all of my newest weight loss videos on the topic page. I also have a bunch of fasting videos coming out in 2019 and 2020.
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