A Better Way to Measure Yourself for Health and Wellness
Current Obesity Crises
According to the Center of National Health Statistics (NCHS) more than 70% of American Adults are overweight or obese (Hales, et. al., 2017)
For middle aged Americans it is worse, with almost one out of every two Americans in the 40-59 being overweight or obese (Ogden, 2017).
According to the Center for Disease Control and the National Cancer Institute, people who have obesity, compared to those with a normal or healthy weight, are at increased risk for many serious diseases and health conditions, including the following:
- All-causes of death (mortality)
- High blood pressure (Hypertension)
- High LDL cholesterol, low HDL cholesterol, or high levels of triglycerides (Dyslipidemia)
- Type 2 diabetes
- Coronary heart disease
- Stroke
- Osteoarthritis (a breakdown of cartilage and bone within a joint)
- Sleep apnea and breathing problems
- Some cancers (endometrial, breast, colon, esophageal, gastric, meningioma, pancreatic, kidney, gallbladder, ovarian, thyroid, and liver)
- Low quality of life
- Body pain and difficulty with physical functioning
Waist to Height Ratio For Health Assessment
There are a number of different approaches to measuring obesity. Body Mass Index (BMI) has been a standard for a while but can be confusing, and certain body types will be labeled has having obesity due to having much muscle mass since this measurement used body weight and height.
Other approaches including waist-hip ratio ‘‘WHpR’’ and waist circumference ‘‘WC’’ have also been shown to be valid. However, recent research (Schneider,et. Al, 2010; Ashwell, et. Al., 2014) published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism have concluded that Waist to Height Ratio (WHtR) represents the best predictor of cardiovascular risk and mortality. The World Health Organization (WHO) discourage the use of BMI as a predictor of cardiovascular risk and mortality (WHO, 2011).
Ashwell (2014) concluded that “This study supports the simple message ‘Keep your waist circumference to less than half your height.’ The use of WHtR in public health screening, with appropriate action, could help add years to life.”
So how do we accurately find our Waist to Height Ratio? Well this is good news. You don’t need to purchase a fancy scale (like I have at home) or go to a laboratory for a fancy (and expensive) Dexa Scan (which I have done), or have someone use calipers on you (which can be inconsistent), or hydrostatic weighing (yes underwater). Preparing this paper has taken all of my excuses away. And when I performed the waist to height calculations I almost cried. We now have a very accurate and scientifically validated way to assess my risk for obesity (and all of the horrible diseases and health condition listed above).
How to determine your Waist to Height Ratio
Step 1. Get a measuring tape.
Step 2. Measure your waist. This is the area above your hip bone and below the bottom of your ribs, the fleshy space (usually about an inch or so above your hip bone close to you belly button).
Step 3. Measure your height (or look at your driver’s license).
Step 4. Divide your waist in inches divided by height in inches.
- For example, if your waist is 34″ and your height is 68″, your equation would look like: 34″ / 68″ = .50. This is your waist-to-height ratio.
- Or you can see by the above example that 34 is exactly half of 68 so no math is needed, you are doing great.
- Or you can use an online calculator simply “Google” Waist to Height Calculator (Here is one, and here is another).
Step 5: See the chart below to see where you land on the spectrum
| Men | Women | Categorization |
| <=0.34 | <=0.34 | Extremely Slim |
| 0.43 to 0.52 | 0.42 to 0.48 | Healthy |
| .50 | .50 | Healthy Cutoff |
| 0.53 to 0.57 | 0.54 to 0.57 | Overweight |
| 0.58 to 0.62 | 0.54 to 0.57 | Obese |
| 0.63 => | 0.58 => | Morbidly Obese |
References
Ard, J.D. (2018). Health risks of overweight and obesity. Retrieved from: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health- information/weight-management/adult-overweight-obesity/health-risks
Ashwell, M., Mayhew, L., Richardson, J., & Rickayzen, B. (2014). Waist-to-height ratio is more predictive of years of life lost than body mass index. PloS one, 9(9), e103483.
Hales, C. M., Carroll, M. D., Fryar, C. D., & Ogden, C. L. (2017). Prevalence of obesity among adults and youth: United States, 2015-2016. US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.
Obesity and Cancer. (2017). Retrieved March 21, 2019, from https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/obesity/obesity-fact-sheet#q5
Ogden, C. L. (2017) Overweight & obesity statistics. Retrieved from: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health- information/health-statistics/overweight-obesity#causes_
World Health Organization. (2011). Waist circumference and waist-hip ratio: report of a WHO expert consultation, Geneva, 8-11 December 2008. Retreived from: https://cdn.lifehacker.ru/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/9789241501491_eng_1561707509.pdf
Schneider, H. J., Friedrich, N., Klotsche, J., Pieper, L., Nauck, M., John, U., & Silber, S. (2010). The predictive value of different measures of obesity for incident cardiovascular events and mortality. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 95(4), 1777-1785.
