The cutoff point for cardiovascular risk factors is less than 0.85 for women and 0.90 for men. A higher number signals more risk. Larger waist size, which reflects the amount of abdominal fat, was found to be harmful, whereas larger hip size, which may indicate the amount of lower body muscle, was protective.
Researchers looked at data from 27,000 people from 52 countries Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. The study contained three major findings: Body Mass Index does not predict heart attack risk, while waist-to-hip ratio does, looking at obesity through this new measure triples the number of people who should be regarded as at risk and that the link between increased waist-to-hip ratio and increased heart attack risk is consistently found in all countries and cultures.
