Fryar et al. (NHANES 2021-2023)
About this reference
The NCHS report publishes survey-weighted anthropometric reference tables from NHANES August 2021-August 2023. Adult tables retain 10-year age groups plus 80 and older and report selected percentiles separately by sex. Table 12 contains waist circumference for 5,726 adults: 2,605 males and 3,121 females. FitnessNorms reproduces its P5, P25, P50, P75, and P95 values without interpolation or rebinning. Waist was measured once at the uppermost lateral border of the iliac crest to the nearest 0.1 cm; pregnant females were excluded from the published circumference tables.
Known limitations
- US civilian noninstitutionalised population only; percentile position may differ in populations with different body-size distributions.
- The August 2021-August 2023 examination response rate was 25.6%. NCHS adjusted the survey weights for nonresponse, but subgroup estimates may have lower precision than in earlier cycles.
- Sample sizes are unweighted; estimates are weighted using NHANES MEC examination weights.
- Cross-sectional design: values reflect population averages at the time of survey, not individual trajectories.
- Pregnant females were excluded from the published weight, BMI, and circumference tables.
- Adult age is reported as an 80-and-older bracket; finer detail above age 80 is not published.
- Waist values measured at another landmark, such as the navel, narrowest waist, or WHO midpoint, are not directly interchangeable with the NHANES iliac-crest values.