Waist-to-height ratio

WHtR ( Waist to Height Ratio of English, waist -to- height ratio) refers to the ratio between waist circumference and body size. It is in contrast to the widely used body mass index ( BMI) make a statement about the distribution of body fat and thus allow a more meaningful with respect to the health relevance of obesity.

An ongoing eight-year study of the Munich Ludwig- Maximilians- University, with over 11,000 participants, according to the WHtR is better suited as an index for the assessment of health risks, as more accurate conclusions about the harmful to health belly fat can be drawn here.

The advantage of the WHtR compared to the BMI lies in the fact that the BMI only a small indication of the health -related causes of over or under weight allowed, since, for example, very muscular men have a high BMI.

Not to be confused is the WHtR with the WHR (waist -to-hip ratio, waist-to - hip ratio ), which was originally introduced in the first place as the body's aesthetic measure, but also allows to estimate the distribution of body fat.

Calculation

The WHtR is calculated as follows:

With the waist circumference and body size indicates. For sub -40 -year-old, a value above 0.5 is critical. At the age of 40 to 50, the limit is between 0.5 and 0.6, with the over-fifties at 0.6.