title: Distribution and correlates of waist-to-hip ratio in black adults: the Pitt County Study.
abstract: A 1988 community-based survey of 1,784 black adults aged 25-50 years in Pitt County, North Carolina, found mean waist-to-hip ratios of 0.890 for men and 0.852 for women. Based on guidelines from the US Department of Agriculture, 20% of the men and 76% of the women had an elevated waist-to-hip ratio. Sedentary behavior was associated with elevated waist-to-hip ratio in men, while a similar excess was associated with alcohol consumption in women. Weak, nonsignificant associations with waist-to-hip ratio were observed for smoking. Socioeconomic status was unrelated to waist-to-hip ratio in men, but it had a strong inverse relation for women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
authors.forename: N L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Keenan
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Strogatz
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: A S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Ammerman
authors.forename: B L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Rice
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects; D000886:Anthropometry / Q000379:methods*; D001823:Body Composition; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006615:Hip / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors