Asahi: Japanese men taller, chubbier; Japanese women taller, slimmer
Japanese men and women have become taller over the past 12 years, but males are now a bit chubbier while females are slimmer, according to a survey released by the economy ministry on Monday...Makers of clothes, automobiles, household electronic appliances and other products asked the ministry for survey because they need data on body sizes to plan their products...Among men in the 40s, their average height increased by 2.8 centimeters from the previous survey to 170.1 cm, while they packed on 4 more kilograms to 69.8 kg. The Body Mass Index (BMI), which shows the degree of fatness in a person, exceeded 24 for this age group, meaning that they are a bit overweight. Japanese women, likely led by the diet boom, became slimmer in most age groups compared with the previous survey. For women in their 40s, for example, their height increased by 2.6 cm to 157.1 cm while they shed 1.3 kg to 52.8 kg. Bust measurements decreased among women in their 20s to 60s. The chest size for women in their 40s, for example, shrank by 1.4 cm to 84.6 cm. However, hip measurements increased in young women between 24 and 30 years old...more...