The use and interpretation of ponderal index and other weight-height ratios in epidemiological studies

Criteria for an index of weight corrected for height are presented and used to investigate, both theoretically and practically, the properties of three weight-height ratios: weightheight, weightheight2 and ponderal index. The data on height, weight and skinfold thickness used in the analysis were collected during the fourth examination of the Framingham Study. Based on the criterion that the ratio should be independent of height, the best of the...