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VIII. ABOUT RESULTS
Waist-Hip Ratio (WHR)
Waist-Hip Ratio (WHR) is an anthropometric indicator calculated by dividing waist circumference
by hip circumference. In theory, it provides an index of abdominal obesity, associated with
obesity-related risk factors. According to the World Health Organization, the recommended
cut-off points for WHR are > 0.9 (men) and > .85 (women) for substantially increased risk
11
.
Visceral Fat & Subcutaneous Fat
Abdominal fat can be further divided into visceral fat and subcutaneous fat. Visceral obesity can
occur even if a subject's weight or BMI is within standards. Such subjects are thin on the outside,
but fat on the inside
12
. Visceral fat level has high correlation with risk of a variety of
obesity-related disease, including cardiovascular diseases and Type 2 diabetes
13 14
.
Because different ethnicities, age groups, and populations vary in body size and composition, no
universal cut-off ranges for visceral fat have been published. Population-specific research has
indicated that the cut-off point for increased risk factors of metabolic syndrome increases with
age, and is higher for men than women
15
.
11. WHO. Obesity: Preventing and managing the global epidemic. Report of a WHO Consultation (TRS 894). Geneva,
World Health Organization (WHO), 2000a
12. Dudeja V, Misra A, Pandey RM, Devina G, Kumar G, Vikram NK. BMI does not accurately preduct overweight in
Asian Indians in northern India. Br J Nutr. 2001;86:105-112
13. Sandeep S, Gokulakrishnan K, Velmurugan K, Deepa M,Mohan V. Visceral & subcutaneous abdominal fat in
relation to insulin resistance & metabolic syndrome in non-diabetic south Indians. Indian J Med Res.
2010;131:629–635.
14. Klein S. The case of visceral fat: argument for the defense. J Clin Invest. 2004;113(11):1530-1531
15. Matsushita Y, Nakagwa T, Yamamoto S, Takahashi Y, Yokoyama T, Mizoue T, Mitsuhiko N. Visceral Fat Area
Cutoff for the Detection of Multiple Risk Factors of Metabolic Syndrome in Japanese: The Hitachi Health Study.
Obesity (Silver Spring). 2012; 20: 1744–1749
Visceral Fat
Subcutaneous Fat
Abdominal Fat
(L4-L5 vertebrae)
52.0 cm²
94.8 cm²