BODY-COMPOSITION IN CENTRAL-ASIA POPULATIONS - FAT PATTERNING VARIATION IN THE KAZAKHS OF THE TIEN-SHAN MOUNTAINS AND THE UIGHURS-OF-SEMERICIA

Eleven anthropometric variables related to fat patterning were analyze d in two populations of Central Asia, the Kazakhs of the Tien Shan mou ntains (2100 m) and the Uighurs of the Semericia plains. Subjects were healthy unrelated males, 122 Kazakhs and 79 Uighurs, 19-65 years. Com parisons were done with a preliminary analysis of variance and then by covariance analysis, taking into account the influence of age. The Ui ghurs, independently of age, show higher values than Kazakhs for all o f the characteristics related to fat patterning, but principal compone nts analysis suggests a similar somatic structure in the two samples. The presence of lower adiposity in the Kazakhs than in the Uighurs cou ld be related to stress, probably associated with nutrition and lifest yle in a mountain environment. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.