Study: Men (and women) find thinner women more attractive

[Robert Z]

I didn't say it didn't carry less risk to be underweight than overweight (although even that is debatable). I said that I think it's harder for a norm thin person to gain weight than it is for a normal fat person to lose it. Obviously I have nothing but anecdotal evidence to back this up, so it's just my opinion/observation.

 

I doubt that. I would suspect it is more dependent on what foods cause one to gain weight most easily. Eat 3000-4000 calories a day and you will gain weight. And that only requires living on fast food. I recall one particular milk shake, I think it was an oreo cookie milk shake, that was rated as having almost 2000 calories. Add a burger and fries to that and eat that for lunch every day. Then have some cookies and ice cream before bed.

 

 

The question is, why is a "normally thin" person thin? No doubt lifestyle plays a role.

[Gemma1]

I doubt that. I would suspect it is more dependent on what foods cause one to gain weight most easily. Eat 3000-4000 calories a day and you will gain weight. And that only requires living on fast food. I recall one particular milk shake, I think it was an oreo cookie milk shake, that was rated as having almost 2000 calories. Add a burger and fries to that and eat that for lunch every day. Then have some cookies and ice cream before bed.

 

 

The question is, why is a "normally thin" person thin? No doubt lifestyle plays a role.

 

Yes, but it's not terribly easy for a very small person to eat huge amounts of food. Appetite and stomach size play such a big role in how much you can physically eat. And even so, I've found that my metabolism seems to speed up if I eat more. I used to work in a restaurant and get free food, so I would eat constantly (including getting a dessert every shift which was 2500 calories by itself). Never gained a pound. Nowadays I am very sedentary and eat fast food regularly but I still don't gain weight.

 

The only time I have ever been able to gain weight was when I was working out constantly and turning that weight into muscle. It took a ton of work to get up to 96 pounds and even then I lost it all when I became sedentary again when I was pregnant.

 

An overweight person has a much simpler problem, just eat less calories than you take in. This is very hard to do mentally for some, but it is not hard at all physically. They might run into the problem that their metabolism slows as they eat less (as mine seems to speed up when I eat more) then they'd have to add an exercise regime.

[jasmineb]

When I was very thin I ate well but in much smaller amounts because I was not as hungry and my stomach must have been smaller at this time? It is a cruel trick of the body that a larger person usually has a larger appetite

 

I had an illness which destroyed my thyroid and I blamed this for my gaining of weight for a long time. However when I began to lower carbohydrates, replace soda with water, and exercise regularly, I lost weight at the rate of 1-2 pounds per week very easily.

[Emilia]

i have a BMI of 22.9 and im indeed healthier than when i was around 18.5.

and i feel better about my body too. i get more attention now than before, even though im thicker and with more cellulite. i workout so the thickness is not flabby.

 

btw that's what i like on men too these days. i love muscle AND some fat. i think some call it cuddly? well.. that <3 thanku.

 

I'm partial to love handles. There is nothing wrong with being built for comfort.

[No_Go]

Sure I agree with most.

 

I think in the modern Western world the two lead causes of increased mortality for underweight people - i.e. infectious diseases and traumas - are greatly reduced, and hence probably the preference evolved.

 

You've made a very interesting observation:

BMI cause for disease effect of disease

high + -

low - +

 

I need to think about it but in this space attraction shouldn't fall in any of the extreme cases assuming that the goal is mating with a healthy partner / producing healthy offspring.

 

Assuming the PeerJ study is correct, would it mean that the 'unhealthy' BMI lies a lot lower than 19? Or humans select based on prediction (healthy in the future) rather than current (healthy now)? Maybe that's because we're pre-selected to put more energy in raising offspring than creating it because of the slow development of humans? If so, healthy in the future (not obese, young etc) will factor in more.

 

The U shaped curves of BMI vs mortality show that low BMI is also associated with higher death and disease. For example, someone who gets sick (bacteria or virus) or has a heart attack with a low BMI is more likely to die because they have less nutritional reserves. Osteoporosis would also be a typical concern.

 

However, the 2 ends of the spectrum are not equivalent. My understanding is we see more cause and effect with obesity leading to disease, than with underweight. Instead, cause and effect tend to reverse on the lower end, where terminal diseases lead to losing weight. Terminal cancer often leads to wasting syndrome (cachexia) for example.

[blackcat777]

Thin people can still have atherosclerosis...

[PogoStick]

Assuming the PeerJ study is correct, would it mean that the 'unhealthy' BMI lies a lot lower than 19? Or humans select based on prediction (healthy in the future) rather than current (healthy now)? Maybe that's because we're pre-selected to put more energy in raising offspring than creating it because of the slow development of humans? If so, healthy in the future (not obese, young etc) will factor in more.

 

Here are some fun things to consider: An older case study found relative risk of infertility of 1.2 when BMI was below 17; contrast that with a RR of 3.2 when BMI was over 27. So yes, it appears obesity is more harmful to fertility than being underweight.

 

Fertility clinics in the US often won't provide services for women with BMI > 35 (yes, some will go higher). I read some Scandinavian countries cut off fertility treatments at BMI >30!

 

Considering a fertility argument, it would make sense to get a girl at the beginning of her reproductive years, around age 15-16. Thus, lots of time to make lots of babies. Correlate that with the "healthy" BMIs of 19-25 and you exclude the bottom 25%, and top 15% of women. That leaves a man with a sizable middle 60% of the most reproductively fit women.

 

In the end I think it all fits together nicely. Though, I can tell this is terribly boring to the rest of the forum

[PogoStick]

Thin people can still have atherosclerosis...

 

Indeed they can, and then add 50 pounds to that person, plus hypertension and diabetes II and you have serious problems.

[Toodaloo]

The question is, why is a "normally thin" person thin? No doubt lifestyle plays a role.

 

Actually sometimes it doesn't.

 

I know two painfully thin women. So thin it is undeniably unattractive. No breasts at all, no shape at all, if you shave their heads they could be mistaken for thin men.

 

One troughs her face on chocolate and does no exercise (not even to play with her children), she is unfit, weak and very unhealthy. Her hair is lank her skin is old looking.

 

The other eats only very small amounts due to digestive problems and is a yoga instructor so very healthy, active and strong. She wishes she could eat more though as she is limited. Of the two she is slightly larger despite not being able to eat very much.

 

I also know of fat women who are very fit, they go running, play sports, eat well but only small amounts, no chocolate/ cakes ever. They are just prone to being fat no matter what they do.

 

Granted some are fat because they are lazy devils and scoff. But that is not a judgement you can make on one Maccy D or unless you know them and their habits.

 

This is why I always say that concentrating on being healthy with diet and exercise is so much more important. I know far too many that contradict and "rules"

[No_Go]

That's super interesting! I'm not getting access to the whole study, but I've always thought BMI on the lower end increases a lot the chance of anovulatory cycles, and here it seems like even BMI of 17 (super low, for 5'7 woman that's only 110 pounds, has minor effects on fertility. To be fair, they say the same is true for the people that are just marginally overweight (BMI 25-27).

 

I'm curious what drives the attraction to men with different BMIs? Why the BMI of 24 is preferred? Is the fatness/attraction factor for men also related to youth/fertility/virility?

 

Haha, I'm just worried that people take it personally. For me it feels exactly as personal as to whether bacteria are attracted to one chemical and not another.

 

 

Here are some fun things to consider: An older case study found relative risk of infertility of 1.2 when BMI was below 17; contrast that with a RR of 3.2 when BMI was over 27. So yes, it appears obesity is more harmful to fertility than being underweight.

 

Fertility clinics in the US often won't provide services for women with BMI > 35 (yes, some will go higher). I read some Scandinavian countries cut off fertility treatments at BMI >30!

 

Considering a fertility argument, it would make sense to get a girl at the beginning of her reproductive years, around age 15-16. Thus, lots of time to make lots of babies. Correlate that with the "healthy" BMIs of 19-25 and you exclude the bottom 25%, and top 15% of women. That leaves a man with a sizable middle 60% of the most reproductively fit women.

 

In the end I think it all fits together nicely. Though, I can tell this is terribly boring to the rest of the forum