Waist–hip ratio
WHR is used as a measurement of obesity, which in turn is a possible indicator of other more serious health conditions. The WHO states that abdominal obesity is defined as a waist-hip ratio above 0.90 for males and above 0.85 for females, or a body mass index (BMI) above 30.0. The National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) states that women with waist-hip ratios of more than 0.8, and men with more than 1.0, are at increased health risk because of their fat distribution.
Gynoid fat distribution
There has not been sufficient evidence to suggest there are significant differences in the perception of attractiveness across cultures. Females considered the most attractive are all within the normal weight range with a low waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), regardless of fluctuations in BMI, and this finding can be seen as consistent across Indonesian, Chinese, White and African-American young men and women. Psychologists have argued that evolutionary selection processes have facilitated this relationship between WHR and female attractiveness, which has resulted in a consensus that seems to transcend cultural boundaries.