Confused about how to measure waist - am I at risk or not?
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This thread is very interesting and a bit depressing. I'm another big waisted person. My clothing waist size is 31.675" and then my health indicator waist size is something like 36". At 66" tall, I am still very much in the unhealthy category using the waist/height rule. Using BMI, I am in the healthy zone. And then using waist/hip (hips are 38") I am in the high risk category.0
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Here's a site giving instructions, and as stated above, it's not your navel, but halfway between your ribs and the top of your hips: http://www.nuffieldhealth.com/about-us/waist-size
Since one of the tests compares waist to hips, it really would make no sense to include your hip bone in the waist measurement. I'm sure some nurses just whip around the navel since that's where the majority of people have their waist and, besides, it's nothing more than a rough indicator, but that's simply not correct for everyone.
(I have no skin in this other than a desire for accuracy, as mine is fine either way. Mostly because I have narrow hips, though, so the fact that catching it around my navel includes my hips doesn't end up mattering that much. Which just shows it's wrong, because a greater difference between hips and waist is actually a positive indicator.)0 -
(All that aside, the fact I do hold weight around my middle is a reason why even apart from the specific waist measurement I want to be lower on the BMI scale than someone who tends to be a pear might need to be.)0
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lemurcat12 wrote: »(All that aside, the fact I do hold weight around my middle is a reason why even apart from the specific waist measurement I want to be lower on the BMI scale than someone who tends to be a pear might need to be.)
Yeah same it took me to get to 21.7 BMI to get my belly measurement to 31" I keep being told by people that I don't really need to lose weight, which would be fair enough if I didn't hold the lot around my gut
lol
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animatorswearbras wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »(All that aside, the fact I do hold weight around my middle is a reason why even apart from the specific waist measurement I want to be lower on the BMI scale than someone who tends to be a pear might need to be.)
Yeah same it took me to get to 21.7 BMI to get my belly measurement to 31" I keep being told by people that I don't really need to lose weight, which would be fair enough if I didn't hold the lot around my gut lol
Yeah, right now I have people telling me I don't need to lose anymore. I've gotten pretty decent at dressing to cover my midsection and standing in a way when it is not as visible but the fat is still.
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Some things are genetic. It's not anyone's "fault" that you're apple-shaped, any more than it's anyone's "fault" that some people are taller or shorter than others.
But the body you have to work with is still the only one you have. So sure, it might be a bit harder for you to get the waist measurement down to where it should be than, say, it is for a pear-shaped or hourglass woman. Maybe it's not fair. But it's the hand you were dealt, so you have to play it.
There's no value judgment here. It's like saying that people of certain racial or ethnic backgrounds are at higher or lower genetic risk for certain diseases. It's not "good" or "bad" to be of those backgrounds; it's just something you have to be aware of and maybe take more precautions against.0 -
oooooh, according to web md, it is at the belly button. must check this when i get home. wouldn't this be unfair to people with a wide bone structure though? seems like a loose guide to me.0
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oooooh, according to web md, it is at the belly button. must check this when i get home. wouldn't this be unfair to people with a wide bone structure though? seems like a loose guide to me.
But that's the point, it's not about "fair" or "unfair". It's a statistical measure saying that if you carry your weight around your belly or midsection, you're at a higher risk for certain medical issues.
Life isn't fair. Them's the breaks sometimes.0 -
oooooh, according to web md, it is at the belly button. must check this when i get home. wouldn't this be unfair to people with a wide bone structure though? seems like a loose guide to me.
But that's the point, it's not about "fair" or "unfair". It's a statistical measure saying that if you carry your weight around your belly or midsection, you're at a higher risk for certain medical issues.
Life isn't fair. Them's the breaks sometimes.
no, my point is that if you're wide boned, you might not have extra fat there, but will have a bigger measurement because you are wide boned. "fair" is the wrong word. it would be inaccurate as a health measure.
i'm assuming that my measurements are fine, but i probably have a bigger measurement than others at my same height and weight because i am wide.0 -
Well they're not measuring your hip bone girth; they're measuring the girth around your midsection. Neither the width of your rib cage nor the width of your pelvis should impact that measurement.
I suppose if someone had an exceptionally big spine... Well, no actually.
Big bones don't really affect this measurement.0 -
I can't think of a bone that would get in the way of a bellybutton measurement. Your bellybutton is above your hips.0
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Well they're not measuring your hip bone girth; they're measuring the girth around your midsection. Neither the width of your rib cage nor the width of your pelvis should impact that measurement.
I suppose if someone had an exceptionally big spine... Well, no actually.
Big bones don't really affect this measurement.
well, if you have wide hips and a wide rib cage, you would need enough skin width to cover the space. of course it would impact your midsection too even though it's below and above it. the midsection connects the space between the hips and the ribs. a more narrow frame would have a smaller amount of space that the midsection needs to fit into.0 -
Well they're not measuring your hip bone girth; they're measuring the girth around your midsection. Neither the width of your rib cage nor the width of your pelvis should impact that measurement.
I suppose if someone had an exceptionally big spine... Well, no actually.
Big bones don't really affect this measurement.
If you measure around the hip bones, the width of your hips is going to affect it. That's why it's going to be wrong. The link I found as well as various others I saw when googling said halfway between ribs and hip bones, which for a great many people is around the navel, but for high-waisted women measuring around the navel will mean measuring around your hips, which means the navel measurement distorts it.
In other words, for the average woman the narrowest point and around your navel is the same thing, but not for everyone.
All of this is why it's good there are a bunch of tests to look at, though. I don't think it's that hard to figure out if you have weight to lose or not. ;-)0 -
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I see what you're saying but it depends on shape. Many women curve inward at the waist in between their ribs and hipbones. Some do quite dramatically (think Marilyn Monroe or the classic hourglass shape) and some do very little, or have more of a straight up-and-down body.
The curving inward shape has a statistically lower risk of certain diseases. That's why waist-to-hip ratio is used as a measurement sometimes.
If you have wide hips and/or ribs and aren't naturally very curvy, it's obviously gonna be harder to reduce waist size. But if you aren't carrying much body fat there, and have a toned, firm stomach, then the health risk is fairly low anyway.0 -
I see what you're saying but it depends on shape. Many women curve inward at the waist in between their ribs and hipbones. Some do quite dramatically (think Marilyn Monroe or the classic hourglass shape) and some do very little, or have more of a straight up-and-down body.
The curving inward shape has a statistically lower risk of certain diseases. That's why waist-to-hip ratio is used as a measurement sometimes.
If you have wide hips and/or ribs and aren't naturally very curvy, it's obviously gonna be harder to reduce waist size. But if you aren't carrying much body fat there, and have a toned, firm stomach, then the health risk is fairly low anyway.
yes, if you're fine, you're fine, but it's an innacurate way to access things. as a general guideline it seems fine, but need to look at other things.0 -
Well waist being less than half of height is an arbitrary measurement anyway. It's meant as a quick check: If you're under, probably no need to worry. If you're over, then look at other factors to see if there's an elevated risk.0
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Yes, it will.
There's an 8 inch difference between my natural waist and my hips. I have a classic hourglass figure.0 -
Here is BCBS of IL (my insurance company): "To measure your waist circumference, place a measuring tape snugly around your waist area just above your hip bone." (emphasis added)
I don't think it's right to include your hip bone in the measurement as would be the case for me if I measured around the navel,* and that's what we seem to be discussing, and the sources I have found seem to agree.Many women curve inward at the waist in between their ribs and hipbones. Some do quite dramatically (think Marilyn Monroe or the classic hourglass shape) and some do very little, or have more of a straight up-and-down body.
The curving inward shape has a statistically lower risk of certain diseases. That's why waist-to-hip ratio is used as a measurement sometimes.
Yes, I agree about all this, but I don't think anyone is disagreeing.
The issue here, as I see it, is whether around the navel is the correct place to measure every woman, even women who are high waisted and go in not at the navel (which for them means measuring around their hip bone) but a bit above that.
*And as I said above, my measurements are actually okay at this point even if I include my hip bone only because--and this should be a bad thing health-wise, as I said before and you seem to agree--I have narrow hips.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »The issue here, as I see it, is whether around the navel is the correct place to measure every woman, even women who are high waisted and go in not at the navel (which for them means measuring around their hip bone) but a bit above that.
Most women are smaller at the natural waist than at the navel.
But the health studies were done on measurements taken at the halfway point between the bottom of the ribcage and the top of the hipbone, which, for most women, is around or just above the navel, NOT at the smallest part of the natural waist.
Therefore, that's what the data was based on, so that's where to take the measurement to see if you're at risk.
Look, it's like cheating your food logs. Sure, you could cheat downward, but you're only cheating yourself in the end.0 -
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I feel like we need a big whiteboard to scribble on for this conversation. It's like football announcers drawing squiggles all over the field at this point.0
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"fair"
LOL0 -
I feel like we need a big whiteboard to scribble on for this conversation. It's like football announcers drawing squiggles all over the field at this point.
How about some visual aids?
The place to take the measurement is halfway between the bottom of the ribcage and the top of the hipbone.
If that falls at the navel, fine. If it falls above or below, also fine.
Many health professionals cheat and take it at the belly button for everyone, just because it's easier. But for someone like lemurcat12, that wouldn't be very accurate if it's including hipbone girth.
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But the health studies were done on measurements taken at the halfway point between the bottom of the ribcage and the top of the hipbone, which, for most women, is around or just above the navel, NOT at the smallest part of the natural waist.
We seem to be agreeing that the proper place to measure is between the bottom of the ribcage and the top of the hipbone. My only point is that that is NOT around the navel for all women. If measuring around the navel includes the hipbone, that seems wrong.
Again, it doesn't affect me, I just don't see how measuring around my hips is supposed to indicate how much fat I have the way this is supposed to.
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I feel like we need a big whiteboard to scribble on for this conversation. It's like football announcers drawing squiggles all over the field at this point.
How about some visual aids?
The place to take the measurement is halfway between the bottom of the ribcage and the top of the hipbone.
If that falls at the navel, fine. If it falls above or below, also fine.
Many health professionals cheat and take it at the belly button for everyone, just because it's easier. But for someone like lemurcat12, that wouldn't be very accurate if it's including hipbone girth.
Wow, if that picture is proportionate, I'm an alien. I have MAYBE 1.5" from the side of the bottom of my ribs to the top of my hips. This diagram makes it look like I should have 6" there. Maybe I'm high hipped? Does that explain why my betty button is 2" lower than the top of my hips?0 -
Wow, if that picture is proportionate, I'm an alien. I have MAYBE 1.5" from the side of the bottom of my ribs to the top of my hips. This diagram makes it look like I should have 6" there.
Same here. That's very dependent on height (I'm 5'1" so naturally I'm gonna have less height there) and on proportions (some women have shorter torso / longer legs vs. longer torso / shorter legs).0 -
I'm hour glass shaped so measure at the narrowest point as the tape measure just seems to fall into place there x0
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All so interesting and really I had no idea it would provoke such controversy. But it's helped to post it. And I will look at people boldly in the eye when they say I don't need to lose more - raise my top - and just wobble at them!!
Looking at a pic of me 12 years ago - with that 20 lb not there yet - I can see the bottom of my ribs and the top of my hips. Yes I think on me the measure (for health) should be around the belly button. Though it isn't ever where I've tied a sash on dresses.
Thanks again for all the comments. It's very cheering to read I'm not alone in this - neither the shape not the desire to slap the nurse!
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