What body shape makes women live longer?

Regardless of a woman's weight, having more fat around the waist and abdomen is associated with increased mortality. Waist circumference is more important than weight. Big hips and small waist are a healthy and good body shape. Dr. Cuilin Zhang and others from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development conducted a long-term health study on 44,600 female nurses.

The nurses, aged 40 to 65 and without heart disease or cancer, had their waist and hip circumferences measured and their health and lifestyle, including their physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and menopausal status, recorded every two years. The patients were followed up for 16 years. Results: (1) A total of 3507 nurses died, of whom 751 died of heart disease and 1748 died of cancer; (2) Among nurses with normal weight, the heart disease mortality rate of those with a waist circumference greater than 88 cm was three times that of those with a smaller waist circumference; (3) The heart disease mortality rate was lower in those with a waist-to-hip ratio less than 0.88 (large hips and small waist).

"While maintaining a healthy weight remains the cornerstone of preventing chronic disease and premature death, maintaining a healthy waist size and preventing the increase of abdominal fat is equally important. This study does not prove that abdominal fat is fatal, but it provides some clues that increased abdominal fat may be associated with increased mortality."

Keep your big hips and small waist in good shape to keep you healthy and live longer