SmallBizResource Blog -- Women in Business

Wednesday's Woman: Time To Refashion The Hourglass

Posted by Gayle Kesten Wednesday, Dec 17, 2008, 11:45 AM ET

Working women who can pinch an inch, rejoice! A new study published in this month's Current Anthropology lets us off our mental hooks.

Elizabeth Cashdan, professor and chair of the University of Utah's Department of Anthropology, concludes in her most recent behavioral research that women who work more and bring home more money are far less likely to have that hourglass figure we all seem to strive for.

It all comes down to hormones (as usual) and the way they distribute fat in our waists and hips. Higher levels of cortisol, released when we're stressed, and androgens, like testosterone, are both associated with a waist-to-hip ratio not typically modeled on magazine covers. On the flip side, "androgenic effects -- stamina, initiative, risk proneness, assertiveness, dominance -- should be especially useful when a woman must depend on her own resources to support herself and her children," writes Cashdan in her report, "Waist-to-Hip Ratio across Cultures: Trade-Offs between Androgen- and Estrogen-Dependent Traits."

She goes on to say: "The evidence, taken together, suggests that adrenal androgens respond facultatively to a variety of psychosocial, cognitive, and physical challenges and that this response enhances a woman’s strength, assertiveness, and competitive aggression. The same hormonal stress response (through increased cortisol and, in women, testosterone) is involved in the association between stress and abdominal fat."

Cashdan's study is based on data from 33 non-Western cultures, where modern amenities we take for granted aren't typically their reality. "In horticultural societies in places such as Africa and New Guinea, women do most of the work, they do most of the cultivation," Cashdan told The Daily Utah Chronicle.

A special thanks to Lisa McKamy, Current Anthropology's managing editor, who sent me a copy of the report so quickly.

• Hard Times, Creative Measures
• Identity Theft Assistance Center's Anne Wallace
• Four Female Ex-Dell Execs Sue For Discrimination
• Shades Of Serendipity
• Career-Defining Moments
• Archives

The Wednesday's Woman series is written for today's community of hard-working, small-business women, featuring profiles, industry trends, research, work/life balance issues and other topics of interest.

Women in Business