Associations between gender, age and waist circumference
Open accessAbstract
In December 2008, the World Health Organization (WHO) convened a consultation to discuss cut-points for waist circumference (WC). As part of that effort, this paper examines the impact of gender and age on WC. As WC is influenced by body weight, body composition and fat distribution, their associations with gender and age were reviewed. We also noted the relationships with sex hormones, parity and menopause. We then summarized data on gender, age and WC. This presentation is not intended to be comprehensive, but to provide an overview of the available research. There are large differences in body composition in men and women, with women having more body fat. Fat distribution also differs with gender, with men having a relatively more central distribution of fat. These differences begin early in life and become more apparent in puberty due to changes in sex hormone levels. In both, men and women, waist and waist-to-hip ratio increase with age. A large portion of this increase is driven by gains in body weight, but the increases observed are larger than those that would be predicted from increases in the body mass index alone, and increases in WC are seen with aging in the absence of weight gain. The current practice of using seperate waist cut-points by gender is appropriate. Although WC increases with age, so does the risk of many chronic diseases. An evaluation of the need for age-specific waist cut-points in adults would need to consider disease risk.
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Gender differences in fat distribution have been previously reported, and these are related to differences in sex hormone levels.
“Gender differences in fat distribution have been previously reported, and these are related to the differences in sex hormone levels [46].”
From Intestinal Microbiota Is Influenced by Gender and Body Mass Index (2016) · cites this paper as [46]
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Intestinal Microbiota Is Influenced by Gender and Body Mass Index
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- Authors
- Stevens, J., Katz, E. G., & Huxley, R. R.
- Affiliations
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
- The University of Sydney (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Stevens, J
- ORCID
- Venue
- European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Published
- 2009-09-09
- Volume
- 64
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 6-15
- ISSN
- 0954-3007 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5640
- PMC
- PMC5909719
- OpenAlex
- W2058481760
- Cited by
- 306
- References
- 67
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 29 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 32 · 2021: 27 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 22 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 13 · 2013: 21 · 2012: 27
- FWCI
- 1.61
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- europepmc.org
- Locations
- European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Aging (T32AG000272)
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (R01 DK069678)
- National Center for Research Resources (RR00046, M01RR000046)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Keywords
- waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, sex differences, aging, body composition, body fat distribution, sex hormones, parity, menopause, abdominal obesity, chronic disease risk
- MeSH terms
- Aging, Body Weight, Female, Humans, Male, Menopause, Pregnancy, Reference Values, Sex Characteristics, Gonadal Steroid Hormones, Body Mass Index, Waist-Hip Ratio, Body Fat Distribution, Waist Circumference
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