3 ms·

Waist-to-height ratio outperforms BMI in predicting heart disease risk

39 points by bikenaga 1y ago

bikenaga 1y ago
Original article: "Waist-to-height ratio and coronary artery calcium incidence: the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil)" - https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanam/article/PIIS2667-193X(25)00292-3/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanam/article/PIIS2667-19...
Graziano_M 1y ago
No way, a measure of fat around your midsection is a better predictor than height and weight, not accounting at all for composition?
- snthpy 1y ago
  Idk. At one point I was at 11% body fat and still had BMI over 25. (83kg and 1.82m) I don't think I've ever been BMI < 25.
  - Graziano_M 1y ago
    I'm agreeing. I'm rather fit, low bodyfat %, and my BMI is about 27
- andreareina 1y ago
  This is a meme that fails to understand the actual, in practice limitations of BMI. The problem is that it underdiagnoses obesity, not that it overdiagnoses it. The problem isn't the nonexistent horde of lean muscular people with BMI > 25, it's all the clinically obese people with BMI < 30 thinking that yeah they're overweight but it's not that bad, they're not obese. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BMI%2Ddefined%20obesity%20(%E2%89%A5%2030,0.50%20and%200.55%2C%20respectively). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BM...
  - kelipso 1y ago
    It's really easy for a healthy man to get BMI >25 with a few months of weight lifting. Frankly, denial and downplaying of this fact just increases skepticism of BMI and the people who say it's a relevant metric.
  - UltraSane 1y ago
    It doesn't take that much muscle for men to get high BMIs
BugsJustFindMe 1y ago
They should use skeletal length instead of height to account for spine curvature disorders.
- _aavaa_ 1y ago
  They should account for the difference between the two to control for comorbidities.
tekla 1y ago
If you're at the point where waist to height ratio vs BMI is something you debate about, you're already too fat
- m463 1y ago
  the lancet article is hard to just read and says it is a better predictor. I imagine there are people who think they are ok, who are not, but I can't tell if it goes the other way.
  - andreareina 1y ago
    The problem with BMI in practice is that it underdiagnoses obesity. W:H fixes that. If BMI says you're obese, you're very likely to be obese. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BMI%2Ddefined%20obesity%20(%E2%89%A5%2030,0.50%20and%200.55%2C%20respectively). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BM...
BobbyTables2 1y ago
I’ve gained about 15 lbs from my younger days and lost 2” from the waist. Stomach sticks out now, didn’t back then. So - progress ?!?! Almost seems saying “floor breaking when stepped on strongly correlated with arterial blockage.”

39 points by bikenaga 1y ago

Original article: "Waist-to-height ratio and coronary artery calcium incidence: the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil)" - https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanam/article/PIIS2667-193X(25)00292-3/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanam/article/PIIS2667-19...

Graziano_M 1y ago

No way, a measure of fat around your midsection is a better predictor than height and weight, not accounting at all for composition?

snthpy 1y ago
Idk. At one point I was at 11% body fat and still had BMI over 25. (83kg and 1.82m) I don't think I've ever been BMI < 25.
- Graziano_M 1y ago
  I'm agreeing. I'm rather fit, low bodyfat %, and my BMI is about 27
andreareina 1y ago
This is a meme that fails to understand the actual, in practice limitations of BMI. The problem is that it underdiagnoses obesity, not that it overdiagnoses it. The problem isn't the nonexistent horde of lean muscular people with BMI > 25, it's all the clinically obese people with BMI < 30 thinking that yeah they're overweight but it's not that bad, they're not obese. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BMI%2Ddefined%20obesity%20(%E2%89%A5%2030,0.50%20and%200.55%2C%20respectively). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BM...
- kelipso 1y ago
  It's really easy for a healthy man to get BMI >25 with a few months of weight lifting. Frankly, denial and downplaying of this fact just increases skepticism of BMI and the people who say it's a relevant metric.
- UltraSane 1y ago
  It doesn't take that much muscle for men to get high BMIs

BugsJustFindMe 1y ago

They should use skeletal length instead of height to account for spine curvature disorders.

_aavaa_ 1y ago
They should account for the difference between the two to control for comorbidities.

tekla 1y ago

If you're at the point where waist to height ratio vs BMI is something you debate about, you're already too fat

m463 1y ago
the lancet article is hard to just read and says it is a better predictor. I imagine there are people who think they are ok, who are not, but I can't tell if it goes the other way.
- andreareina 1y ago
  The problem with BMI in practice is that it underdiagnoses obesity. W:H fixes that. If BMI says you're obese, you're very likely to be obese. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BMI%2Ddefined%20obesity%20(%E2%89%A5%2030,0.50%20and%200.55%2C%20respectively). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2877506/#:~:text=BM...

BobbyTables2 1y ago

I’ve gained about 15 lbs from my younger days and lost 2” from the waist. Stomach sticks out now, didn’t back then. So - progress ?!?! Almost seems saying “floor breaking when stepped on strongly correlated with arterial blockage.”