[1] To locate the natural waistline, one need simply stand upright and then tilt over to the side, keeping the legs and hips straight.

[3] Strictly, the waist circumference is measured at a level midway between the lowest palpable rib and the iliac crest,[4] respectively typically 60% and 64% of total height.

[5] It can be predicted as 72% of the neck height;[5] an alternative approximation, very relevant in anthropometry, is Small of the Back (SOB) + 2cm.

Further, whether waist circumference or body mass index (BMI) is a better predictor of adverse health outcomes is debatable.

Some research suggests waist circumference can be predicted from brain function, therefore capturing the neurobehavioral pathophysiology of obesity.

However, the waist region remains a highly important measurement and anthropometric landmark in garment construction.

Definition: "middle part of the body," also "part of a garment fitted for the waist, portion of a garment that covers the waist" (but, due to fashion styles, often above or below it), probably from Old English *wæst 'growth', hence, 'where the body grows', from Proto-Germanic *wahs-tu- (cognates: Old English wæstm, Old Norse vöxtr, Swedish växt, Old High German wahst 'growth, increase', Gothic wahstus 'stature', Old English weaxan 'to grow'.