In 2020, the average height of males aged between 18 and 44 years in China figured at ***** centimeters, up *** centimeters compared to that in 2015. On the other side, obesity and overweight conditions have seen a gradual increase across the country mainly related to an unhealthy diet and a less active urban lifestyle.

Descriptive statistics for height components by quintiles in men:Height (m): Quintile 1: mean = 1.62, range = 1.15–1.65, std = 0.03; Quintile 2: mean = 1.67, range = 1.65–1.69, std = 0.009; Quintile 3: mean = 1.70, range = 1.69–1.72, std = 0.008; Quintile 4: mean = 1.73, range = 1.72–1.75, std = 0.008; Quintile 5: mean = 1.78, range = 1.75–1.96, std = 0.03. Leg Length (cm): Quintile 1: mean = 74.1, range = 37–76, std = 2.02; Quintile 2: mean = 77.5, range = 76.1–78.9, std = 0.61; Quintile 3: mean = 79.5, range = 79–80, std = 0.47; Quintile 4: mean = 81.4, range = 80–82.5, std = 0.61; Quintile 5: mean = 84.9, range = 82.5–101, std = 2.06. Sitting height (cm): Quintile 1: mean = 85.6, range = 56.087.9, std = 1.84; Quintile 2: mean = 88.6, range = 88.0–90.0, std = 0.53; Quintile 3: mean = 90.5, range = 90.0–91.5, std = 0.53; Quintile 4: mean = 92.4, range = 91.6–93.1, std = 0.47; Quintile 5: mean = 95.2, range = 93.1–108.0, std = 1.51.*Expressed as per standard deviation change. Model 1: univariate analyses. Model 2 controlled for birth cohort, education, and income. Model 3 controlled for birth cohort, education, income, and BMI at baseline. Model 4 controlled for birth cohort, education, income, smoking before age 20, BMI at age 20, BMI at baseline, and participation in team sports during adolescence.

Descriptive statistics for the leg-length-to-sitting-height ratio by quintiles of the leg-length-to-sitting-height in women are as follows: Quintile 1: mean = 0.80, range = 0.43–0.82, std = 0.02; Quintile 2: mean = 0.84, range = 0.82–0.85, std = 0.008; Quintile 3: mean = 0.86, range = 0.85–0.88, std = 0.007; Quintile 4: mean = 0.89, range = 0.88–0.91, std = 0.009; Quintile 5: mean = 0.95, range = 0.91–2.02, std = 0.05. Descriptive statistics for the leg-length-to-sitting-height ratio by quintiles of the leg-length-to-sitting-height in men are as follows: Quintile 1: mean = 0.82, range = 0.43–0.84, std = 0.02; Quintile 2: mean = 0.85, range = 0.84–0.87, std = 0.007; Quintile 3: mean = 0.88, range = 0.87–0.89, std = 0.006; Quintile 4: mean = 0.90, range = 0.89–0.91, std = 0.008; Quintile 5: mean = 0.94, range = 0.91–1.46, std = 0.03.*Expressed as per standard deviation change.Model 1: univariate analyses. Model 2 controlled for birth cohort, education, and income. Model 3 controlled for birth cohort, education, income, and BMI at baseline. Model 4 controlled for birth cohort, education, income, smoking before age 20, BMI at age 20, BMI at baseline, and participation in team sports during adolescence.

IntroductionChinese are reported to have a higher percent body fat (%BF) and a higher percent trunk fat (%TF) than whites for a given body mass index (BMI). However, the associations of these ethnic differences in body composition with metabolic risks remain unknown. Methods and ProceduresA total of 1 029 Chinese from Hangzhou, China, and 207 whites from New York, NY, USA, were recruited in the present study. Body composition was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Analysis of covariance was used to assess the ethnic differences in fat, fat distribution, and metabolic risk factors. ResultsAfter adjusting for BMI, age, and height, Chinese men had an average of 3.9% more %BF and 12.1% more %TF than white men; Chinese women had an average of 2.3% more %BF and 11.8% more %TF than white women. Compared with whites, higher metabolic risks were detected in Chinese for a given BMI after adjusting for age and height. Further adjustment for %BF did not change these ethnic disparities. However, after adjusting for %TF, the ethnic differences decreased and become insignificant in triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and blood pressure (except for systolic blood pressure in men). For fasting plasma glucose, the ethnic differences persisted after adjustment for %BF, but decreased significantly from 0.910 to 0.686 mmol/L among men, and from 0.629 to 0.355 mmol/L among women, when the analyses were further controlled for %TF. DiscussionChinese have both higher %BF and %TF than white people for a given BMI. However, only %TF could in part account for the higher metabolic risk observed in Chinese men and women.