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[37.3(Ϯ 12.9) years] were assessed for values of body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) for predicting DM or HT by receiver operating characteristic curve analyses. Likelihood ratios for DM and HT were calculated, and BMIs or WCs for public-health screening were developed. Subanalyses included regional data. Results: Likelihood ratios of DM and HT increased from BMI values of 22 to 24 kg/m 2 in both sexes and with WC values of 75 to 80 cm in men and 70 to 80 cm in women. The best BMI cutoffs for predicting DM were 26.3 to 27.4 kg/m 2 in men and 27.7 to 28.9 kg/m 2 in women, with similar values for HT, i.e., 26.2 to 27.0 kg/m 2 and 27.7 to 28.5 kg/m 2 , for men and women, respectively; WC cutoffs for DM were 93 to 98 cm in men and 94 to 99 cm in women, and cutoffs for HT were 92 to 96 cm and 93 to 96 cm for men and women, respectively. The WC cutoffs had higher sensitivity and specificity than those of BMI. Discussion: The risk for DM and HT starts at lower levels of BMI and WC than those suggested by WHO. WC is a better discriminator than BMI measures for use in public health.

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An epidemiological study was conducted in the market town of March, Cambridgeshire, to assess the quantitative importance of cooking and table salt to total dietary salt intake by the use of a fused mixture of lithium carbonate and sodium chloride. Men and women aged 20-60 participated in a 12 day study with sequential 24 h urine collections to assess salt sources over a 7 day period. Total salt consumption estimated from urinary chloride excretion amounted to 10.6 +/- 0.55 (SEM) g in 33 men and 7.4 +/- 0.29 (SEM) g in 50 women. The cooking salt eaten was only 0.45 +/- 0.09 (SEM) g in men and women, with men eating more table salt (0.77 g/day) than women (0.46 g/day). Discretionary sources, i.e. cooking and table salt use, contributed only 15% to the total intake. Salt from manufacturing foods and catering in purchased food therefore provided on average 85% of total salt intake. These results are consistent even when an allowance is made for the slightly poorer pouring quality of the lithium-tagged salt. The importance of food as a source of salt was reflected in the significant relationship between the weight of the individual and the amount of salt eaten (for males P less than 0.05 and for females P less than 0.001). Cooking salt consumption did not relate to the amount of salt derived from purchased food nor did table salt use relate to the amount of salt in cooked foods.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)