Attractiveness of women’s body: body mass index, waist–hip ratio, and their relative importance

Body mass index and waist-hip ratio are related to human health and both play a role in mate choice. However, previous research is inconsistent as to what body mass index and waist-hip ratio values are preferred in women and what the relative importance of body mass index and waist-hip ratio for attractiveness is. Here, we made several methodological refinements to obtain reliable estimations. Participants (Poles) indicated the most attractive woman from a set of digitally manipulated high-quality silhouettes varying orthogonally in body mass index and waist-hip ratio and viewed from behind to exclude effects of the breast size. Then, each participant chose the more attractive silhouette from pairs in which one figure deviated from his/her ideal in body mass index and the other in waist-hip ratio. Both sexes preferred underweight women (body mass index = 17.3) with accentuated waist (waist-hip ratio = 0.66 for female and 0.70 for male judges). These represent preferences for unhealthy body mass and healthy body shape. Furthermore, body mass index proved twice as important for attractiveness as waist-hip ratio, even though literature data indicate that waist-hip ratio is at least as important for health as body mass index. We discuss the obtained pattern of preferences from the perspective of evolutionary psychology.