Guest guest Posted November 28, 2005 Report Share Posted November 28, 2005 Dear all, has been writing in this list for quite long about Cardiac Diseases. Ayurvedists have sixth sense to judge what is right and what is wrong. Since this author discovered something which supportss views, he wishes to bring it to the notice of all group members. BMI (body mass index), a measure based on height and weight, has been used for a long time to assess obesity and posible CAD risk. New research indicates to abandon this and instead use the waist to hip ratio. Researchers have found that this measure is by far the most accurate way to assess risk. One is at greater risk if he is an 'apple', which is when one carries extra weight around stomach, than if one is a 'pear', when hip measurement is greater than waist measurement. To discover this ratio, measure your waist at the navel area, and your hips around the buttocks. Divide the waist size by your hips size, and a ratio that is greater than 0.8 in women, and 0.95 in men, suggests a higher risk of a heart attack. Use same units to measure both sizes, and same measurements tape to eliminate errors. Researchers were able to prove the accuracy of the waist to hip ratio after testing various methods on 27,000 people. The body-mass index was by far the most inaccurate as it fails to take into account muscle density and other factors. Those who were obese as judged by the waist to hip ratio had substantially more heart attacks than those who were obese according to the BMI measure. (Source: The Lancet, 2005; 366: 1640-9). There are far reaching implications of these observation which may be discussed in another post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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