How do you measure up? Artist compares 'average' shape of men from around the world .

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Does the U.S really have one of the biggest obesity problems in the world, and which country is actually the Land of the Giants?
Pittsburg artist Nickolay Lamm has studied the body measurements of average men in America, Japan, France and the Netherlands and discovered U.S men are, in fact the fattest, while Dutch men are the tallest.
Lamm used these figures to work out the average BMI for each country and has created computer-generated images to show how the nationalities stack up against each other.

Pittsburg artist Nickolay Lamm collected data about average weights and heights for men in America, Japan, the Netherlands and France (from left to right). Lamm then used these figures to work out the average BMI for each country

The left image shows the relative heights of the average men (left to right) from the Netherlands, America, France and Japan. Average Dutch men are 6ft, while the average Japanese male is 5ft 7. The right image compares the height and waist of the average American on the left with that of a Dutchman, right

HOW THE COUNTRIES MEASURE UP

The average BMI, height and waist measurements of men in the U.S, Japan, France and the Netherlands are as follows:

Country: USA            Country: Japan

BMI: 29                       BMI: 23.7
Height: 176.4cm         Height: 171.4cm
Waist: 99.4cm            Weight: 82.9cm
Country: France      Country: Netherlands  
BMI: 25.55                  BMI: 25.5
Height: 174.4cm         Height: 183.3cm
Waist: 92.3cm            Waist: 91cm

According to the data, the average male in the U.S has the highest BMI of any country studied, at 29.

 

This puts them at the top end of the overweight range for BMI and is just one point away from being obese.
In fact, the only country whose average male had a BMI score in the healthy range was Japan. 
The average height of American men was found to be 5ft 9in (176.4cm) with an average waist of 99.4cm (33.1 inches).
Japanese men were the shortest and thinnest according to Lamm's Body Measurement Project with an average height of 5ft 7in (171.4cm) and 32 inches (82.9cm).

The average height in the U.S, far left, is 5ft 9in, with an average waist of 33.1in. Japanese men were the shortest with an average height of 5ft 7in and 32in waists. In the Netherlands average waists measure 35in and they were the tallest at 6ft. French men, far right have an average height of 5ft 8in and 36 inch waists

This gave Japanese men the lowest BMI of the group with 23.7 BMI.
In Europe, French men were found to have an average height of 5ft 8in (174.4cm).
Their waists, on average, measure 36 inches (92.3cm) and this gives France an average BMI of 25.55 - just on the edge of healthy and overweight range.
Commenting on this relatively high BMI in France, Lamm said: 'France has a culture that respects food from the farm, and teaches its children to value a well-balanced diet and proper meal times.
Yet, the American culture of eating anytime is catching on in France and may be the cause of increased obesity levels.'

Lamm gathered the measurements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S, the Jikei University School of Medicine, National Institute for Public Health and the European Neural Network Society. He then used a computer program to create the average male image. This image shows the average French man

The average Japanese man, pictured, was the only group to fall in the healthy BMI range, compared to the other countries studied

In the Netherlands, average men measure 35 inches (91cm) and were by far the tallest of the group with an average height of 6ft (183.3cm).
This gave them an average BMI of 25.2 - just 0.3 points lower than France and still on the border of overweight.
'The Dutch have some of the world's best healthcare, particularly at the stages of life that really make a difference for how tall we end up - prenatal and the early years of childhood,' explained Lamm.
'Secondly, they spread the health around. The most well-off Americans are tall, but less-privileged groups across all races bring down the average.'
He added: 'Japanese women and men live longer and healthier than everyone else thanks to a healthy diet and lifestyle.'
Lamm gathered the BMI, height and waist measurements from multiple sources including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S, the Jikei University School of Medicine, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, and the European Neural Network Society.

Lam also worked with expert on body shape measurement, Matthew P. Reed from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, to verify the data.

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