Some mathematical properties of weight-for-height indices used as measures of adiposity.

Abstract

A problem often encountered in large-scale epidemiological studies is the assessment of a per son's relative adiposity from very limited data such as measurements of his height and weight only. There have been several papers in recent years, those of Billewicz, Kemsley and Thomson (1962), Kemsley, Billewicz and Thomson (1962), Khosla and Lowe (1967), Evans and Prior (1969), and Florey (1970), which have examined the properties of height-and-weight indices without agreeing on a single ideal index. The present paper develops a unified theory and gives some examples of its use.