Sex Differences in Interrelationships between Percent Body Fat (%Fat) and Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR) in Healthy Male and Female Adults

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to investigate sexual differences in relationships among percent body fat (%Fat), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), waist-to-stature ratio (WSR), abdominal circumference to stature ratio (ASR), body mass Index (BMI) and skinfold thicknesses in healthy male and female adults. Subjects were 64 males and 65 females, aged 22-60. Body density was measured by under \vater weighing and by skinfold anthropometry. Mean %Fat was 15.6% in males and 23.9% in females. Mean WHR was 0.83 in males and 0.72 in females. The correlation between %Fat and WHR was not significant in females (r= -0.l04) but was significant in males (r= 0.631, p 0.001). Highly significant correlations were obtained among %Fat, WSR, ASR, BMI, and sum of eight skinfolds in both sexes.