The cardiometabolic risk indicators used in the present study were: body weight (kg), height (cm), BMI (kg/m2), neck circumference (cm), submandibular skinfold (cm), waist circumference (cm), calf circumference (cm), and waist-to-height ratio. Body weight and height were measured following the protocol of the World Health Organization [31 ], with the participants wearing light clothing and without shoes, using a 206 SECA model digital scale and a portable stadiometer, respectively. Neck, abdomen, and calf circumferences were measured using a 201-SECA-model inelastic measure tape. The measurement of the neck circumference was performed standing and in an upright position, with the head positioned in the Frankfort horizontal plane, placing the measure tape at the midpoint of the neck height [32 (link)]. Waist circumference was measured at the midpoint between the iliac crest and the last rib, at the end of the expiratory movement [31 ], while the calf circumference was measured in the widest section of the distance between the ankle and the knee, in the calf area [33 (link)]. The measurement of the submandibular fold was made by applying a Slim Guide caliper (Rosscraft, Surrey, Canada) previously validated [34 (link)], in a bipedal position and looking forward, at the point of the line that joins the thyroid cartilage and the chin, in an anteroposterior direction [35 (link)], as Figure 1 shows. The waist–height ratio (WC (cm)/height (cm)) was calculated based on the absolute values of the aforementioned measurements. The indicators used to quantify obesity were BMI and waist circumference, which have been established as easy-to-apply tools in clinical practice to assess cardiovascular risk in overweight or obese patients [36 (link)].
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