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Definition — what does that mean?
The waist circumference divided by the hip circumference, both measured in the same unit; the WHO uses it as one measure of abdominal fat distribution.
In Swedish: Midja–höftkvot
WHR
The waist circumference divided by the hip circumference, both measured in the same unit; the WHO uses it as one measure of abdominal fat distribution.
WHR=0.8
WHR equals 80 divided by 100, equals 0.8
You are given
Round to 2 decimals.
Source: World Health Organization (2011). Waist circumference and waist–hip ratio: report of a WHO expert consultation, Geneva, 8–11 December 2008. World Health Organization. — checked October 19, 2026
w is the waist circumference and p the hip circumference, in the same unit. The ratio compares the middle of the body with the hips: where the fat sits, rather than how much there is.
Waist 80 cm, hip 100 cm: WHR = 80 / 100 = 0.80. The same waist on hips of 90 cm is 0.89. Turned round, a waist of 80 cm at a ratio of 0.85 means hips of 94 cm.
The WHO’s protocol, cited under the formula, takes the waist midway between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bone and the hips at the widest part of the buttocks, with the tape snug and horizontal and the subject standing. Two readings a centimetre apart move the ratio by a hundredth, so the protocol matters more than the formula.
Fat around the organs carries more of the risk linked to obesity than fat on the hips and thighs, and a high ratio is the tape measure’s sign of it. The WHO’s 2008 consultation gave 0.90 for men and 0.85 for women as the ratios above which the risk of metabolic complications is substantially increased, for the populations studied. The waist-to-height ratio asks the same question against the height, and BMI asks a different one, about weight.
Why does the WHO give different cut-offs for men and women?
Because women carry more fat on the hips at the same health, which lowers the ratio.
Which is better, waist–hip or waist-to-height?
Both are tape-measure screens for abdominal fat, and the research does not crown one. The
body measurements calculator gives both.
Do the units matter?
No, as long as both circumferences use the same one.
| Solve for | Rearranged | With the numbers | Comes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| w | WHRp | 0.8·100 | 80 |
| p | wWHR | 800.8 | 100 |
| WHR | wp | 80100 | 0.8 |
Last reviewed October 20, 2026 ·How pages are reviewed
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