Body Mass Index and its Associations with Waist-to-Height Ratio in A Sample of Female Students of The University of Peshawar

Abstract

Background: Obesity has almost tripled worldwide since 1975. Around 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight and among these over 650 million were found to be obese by a WHO study in 2016. To measure obesity, BMI (Body Mass Index) was considered the standard but studies have claimed the superiority of WHtR (Waist to height ratio) over WC (Waist circumference) and BMI for detecting cardiometabolic risk factors in both genders. Objectives: The main objective is to describe WHtR in the given sample and assess its association with BMI. Methodology: A sample of female students aged 18-23 years from a government university of Peshawar were measured for the following anthropometric parameters: weight, height, and waist circumference. BMI and WHtR (Waist to height ratio) were calculated. For the latter indicator, WHtR > 0.5 was taken as a cut-off for a higher risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and lower life span while WHtR < 0.5 was considered healthy both for males and females. The subjects were classified into underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese using the Adult BMI Calculator verified by CDC. Results: The study showed a strong association between BMI and WHtR i.e. 68% of females who were with a high WHtR, were also overweight or obese as per BMI, and only 15% of the females who had a WHtR ≤0.5 were overweight or obese as per BMI. Conclusion: The positive association between BMI and WHtR altogether provided a new dimension but needs further exploration in a different population