Anat Sci Int
DOI 10.1007/s12565-015-0283-0
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Study on the adult physique with the Heath-Carter
anthropometric somatotype in the Han of Xi’an, China
Li-Tao Yang1 • Ning Wang1 • Zeng-Xian Li1 • Cui Liu1 • Xin He1 •
Jian-Fei Zhang1 • Hua Han1 • You-Feng Wen2 • Yi-Hua Qian1 • Huan-Jiu Xi2
Received: 10 February 2015 / Accepted: 16 April 2015
 Japanese Association of Anatomists 2015
Abstract The study of somatotypes has important sig-
nificance for medical and physical anthropology as well as
sports science. The aim of this study was to understand the
somatotype components of the Han population in Xi’an
and compare the somatotypes of the Han and five other
nationalities in China. The study sample consisted of 429
people of Han nationality (207 males, 222 females) from
Xi’an, China, aged C20 years old. The Heath-Carter an-
thropometric method was employed. We evaluated the
differences in age and sex by one-way ANOVA and t test.
A comparison of somatotypes between the Han and other
nationalities was made using the U test. The results showed
that the male and female samples all could be classified as
having a mesomorphic endomorph profile. The difference
in endomorphy was strongest between sexes in all age
groups (P \ 0.01). There were prominent differences in
mesomorphy and ectomorphy between males and females
L. Yang and N. Wang contributed equally to this work.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this
article (doi:10.1007/s12565-015-0283-0) contains supplementary
material, which is available to authorized users.
& Yi-Hua Qian
qianyh38@mail.xjtu.edu.cn
& Huan-Jiu Xi
huanjiuxi@163.com
1
Department of Human Anatomy and Histology-Embryology,
Key Laboratory of Environment and Genes Related to
Diseases of Education Ministry, Xi’an Jiaotong University
Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi’an,
Shaanxi 710061, People’s Republic of China
2 relative body fatness, mesomorphy is the relative muscu-
Biological Anthropology Research Institute of Liaoning
Medical College, 40, section 3 Songpo Road, Jinzhou,
Liaoning 121001, People’s Republic of China
in the 50–59- and C60-year-old age groups. In females, the
differences in somatotype components appeared to be
distinguished between ages (P \ 0.01 or P \ 0.05).
However, in males, there were prominent differences in
somatotype components between the 20–29 year olds and
all other age groups (P \ 0.01 or P \ 0.05) except for
between those 20–29 and C60 years old in endomorphy.
Compared with the other five nationalities, there were
prominent differences in somatotype components between
males and females. These results suggest that the somato-
type of the Han population in Xi’an, China, has a pre-
dominantly mesomorphic endomorph profile. The
endomorphic component shows distinct differences be-
tween ages and genders, respectively. Additionally, there
are distinct differences in the somatotype components be-
tween Xi’an Han and five other nationalities in China in
males and females.
Keywords Somatotype
Anthropometry
Han
nationality
Xi’an, China
Introduction
The technique of somatotyping is used to assess the body
shape and composition or the physique. Currently, the most
commonly used method for estimating physiques is the
Heath-Carter anthropometric somatotype (Heath and Carter
1967; Liiv et al. 2013; Reis et al. 2007). A somatotype is
expressed in a three-number rating, representing the en-
domorphic, mesomorphic and ectomorphic components,
respectively, always in the same order. Endomorphy is the
loskeletal development, and ectomorphy is the relative
linearity or slenderness of a physique.
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Heath-Carter somatotyping is not only significant in
research on body shapes and physiological functions, but
also in some diseases and prediction of potential move-
ments of young people, etc. It was recommended as a
comprehensive evaluation method of the human body by
the ‘‘International Biological Development Planning’’
(Carter and Heath 1990).
Some somatotype studies have been carried out to ex-
amine the relationships between physiques and sports
(Battista et al. 2007; Bale et al. 1994; Kawashima et al.
2003; Hopper 1997) and to predict the potential movement
of adolescents (Monsma and Malina 2005; Duncan et al.
2006; Nikolaidis and Vassilios Karydis 2011). The findings
indicated that the somatotype and its components are related
to disease risk factors and cardiovascular disease (Baltadjiev
et al. 2009; Eiben et al. 2004; Valkov et al. 1996; Mensah
et al. 1999; Baltadjiev 2012). Other results showed that
physical stress not only causes retardation of linear growth,
but also produces changes in the human physique during the
growth period (Ozener and Duyar 2008).
Xi’an is one of the main places of origin of the Han
population. Xi’an is the most populous city in China, with 53
ethnic groups. The largest ethnic group, the Han, accounts for
more than 98.9 % of the Xi’an population. Therefore, the
evolution and development of the Xi’an Han somatotype
could represent the somatotype of the Han nationality. This
study could be significant for protecting against disease and
improving the Chinese nation’s database.
The aim of this study was to explore the somatotype
characteristics and compare the somatotypes of people of
Han nationality in Xi’an with those of other nationalities or
districts.
Methods
Subjects
The study sample consisted of 429 people of Han nation-
ality (207 males, 222 females) from Xi’an, China, aged
C20 years old, obtained in 2010. Informed consent was
given by all participants. The subjects were divided into
five groups based on their ages (20–29, 30–39, 40–49,
50–59, C60 years old). Each group had two subgroups:
male and female. There were more than 40 people in each
subgroup. All the subjects were in good health and came
from unrelated families. Each subject was traced back for
more than three generations of family history in Xi’an to
ensure that they were national representatives of the Xi’an
Han population (He et al. 2012). All anthropometric mea-
surements were taken by the same well-trained anthro-
pometrist, according to standard techniques (Xi and Chen
2010).
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L. Yang et al.
Anthropometry and somatotyping
The subjects were somatotyped with the Heath-Carter an-
thropometric method (Heath and Carter 1967), which de-
fines an individual’s somatotype as a composite of the
contributions of three components: endomorphy, meso-
morphy and ectomorphy. Anthropometric measurements,
including body weight, height, skinfold thicknesses (tri-
ceps, subscapular, supra-ilium and medial calf), bi-epi-
condylar breadths of the humerus and femur, and
contracted arm girth and calf girth, were taken from each
subject.
The subjects’ body weight was measured with a body
weight and fat measurement device (Omron HBF-358,
Powerlogics Co., Ltd., Korea). The height was measured
with a Martin altimeter (Nanchang Measuring Instrument
Factory, China). The skinfold thicknesses were assessed by
a skinfold thickness meter (Nantong Hyatt Fitness Mea-
suring Equipment Co., Ltd., China), girths with a tape
measure and skeletal breadths with a small sliding caliper
(Chengdu Jingbo Diameter Precision Measurement Re-
search Institute, China).
The three somatotype components were computed ac-
cording to the Heath-Carter Anthropometric Somatotype
Instruction Manual (Carter and Heath 1990).
All examinations were approved by the Ethics Com-
mittee of Xi’an Jiaotong University Health Science Center.
Statistical analysis
All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS 17.0
software for Windows (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA).
Somatotype components were analyzed with one-way
ANOVA to determine whether there were statistically
significant differences among the somatotype means of
different ages. Student’s t-test was applied to compare the
variations of somatotype components between females and
males at different ages. Somatotype attitudinal mean
(SAM) values were obtained to get an estimate of the
dispersion of somatopoints in each age/sex group. The
comparison of somatotypes between the Han and other
nationalities was made by U test. All data are expressed as
mean ± standard deviation (X ± SD), and the level of
significance was set at p \ 0.05.
Results
Somatotype and anthropometric characteristics
of male and female Han subjects in Xi’an
All ten descriptive statistics measurements used to compute
the three somatotype components are presented in the
Study on adult physique with…

Table 1 Anthropometric characteristics of males and females of Han nationality in Xi’an

Age Male Female
n Somatotype X Y SAM (X ± SD) n Somatotype X Y SAM (X ± SD)

20–29 40 5.0-3.6-2.7 -2.3 -0.6 2.21 ± 1.06 41 5.4-3.4-2.7 -2.7 -1.1 2.17 ± 1.14
1.5-1.3-1.4 1.9-1.1-1.2
30–39 43 5.9-4.5-1.6 -4.4 1.4 2.11 ± 0.93 43 6.3-3.8-2.0 -4.2 -0.7 1.75 ± 0.79
1.5-1.3-1.2 1.3-1.1-1.0
40–49 44 5.9-4.7-1.3 -4.5 2.1 1.72 ± 0.89 49 6.8-4.4-1.6 -5.2 0.3 1.85 ± 1.00
1.3-1.1-1.0 1.1-1.4-1.1
50–59 40 5.7-4.2-1.7 -4.0 1.1 1.55 ± 0.85 46 7.2-4.6-1.2 -6.0 0.7 1.56 ± 1.08
1.1-1.0-1.0 1.3-1.1-0.9
C60 40 5.7-4.2-1.5 -4.1 1.2 1.74 ± 1.12 43 7.5-5.0-0.9 -6.6 1.5 1.72 ± 1.31
1.3-1.1-1.2 1.4-1.2-1.1
Total 207 5.6-4.2-1.8 -3.9 1.1 1.87 ± 1.00 222 6.7-4.2-1.6 -5.0 0.2 1.80 ± 1.08
1.4-1.2-1.3 1.6-1.3-1.2

Table 2 Somatotype distribution of Han males in Xi’an (%) various sex/age groups are plotted on the somato-charts for
the Han nationality in Xi’an (Fig. 1a, b).
Somatotype Age Total
20* 30* 40* 50* 60* Differences in somatotype components in each age
Ecto.Endo 7.5 2.3 0.0 5.0 0.0 2.9 group for gender
Balanced Endo 10.0 6.3 6.8 7.5 5.0 7.7
Meso.Endo 42.5 53.5 65.9 70.0 75.0 61.4
The somatotype components of males and females were
Endo-Meso 5.0 23.3 11.4 12.5 7.5 12.1
compred. The results are shown in Table 4. All somatotype
components in males remained virtually unchanged after
Endo.Meso 2.5 2.3 13.6 2.5 0.0 4.3
29 years of age, but except for ectomorphy the somatotype
Balanced Meso 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.5 0.5
components kept increasing up to C60 years in females.
Ecto.Meso 2.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5
The ectomorphy in females appeared to decrease down to
Meso-Ecto 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.5 0.5
C60 years. The endomorphy showed statistically sig-
Meso.Ecto 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
nificant differences between sexes in all age groups
Balanced Ecto 5.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.5 1.4
(P \ 0.01). The mean value of endomorphy was sig-
Endo.Ecto 12.5 2.3 2.3 0.0 0.0 3.4
nificantly higher than those of mesomorphy and ectomor-
Ecto-Endo 2.5 4.7 0.0 0.0 2.5 1.9
phy in males and females. There were prominent
Central 10.0 2.3 0.0 2.5 2.5 3.4
differences between males and females in mesomorphy and
ectomorphy in the age groups 50–59 and C60 years.
However, there were no significant differences in meso-
supplementary data (supplementary Tables 1 and 2). An- morphy and ectomorphy between males and females in the
thropometric characteristics of males and females are age groups 20–29, 30–39 and 40–49 years.
presented in Tables 1 (endomorphy-mesomorph-ectomor-
phy, X and Y and SAM), 2 and 3. When classifying the Difference in somatotype components by age
people according to the somatotype categories (13 cate-
gories) established by Carter (Carter and Heath 1990), the The comparisons of somatotype components in each age
male somatotype focused on Meso.Endo (61.4 %), Endo- group for both genders are shown in Table 5. In females,
Meso (12.1 %) and Balanced Endo (7.7 %); that of females there were significant differences in somatotype compo-
focused on Meso.Endo (74.3 %), Balanced Endo (7.2 %) nents between the 20–29-year and all other age groups, the
and Ecto.Endo (5.4 %). Both the male and female samples 30–39-year and all other age groups, and the 40–49-year
belonged to a mesomorphic endomorphy (endomorphy is and all other age groups (P \ 0.01 or P \ 0.05), except for
dominant and the mesomorph is greater than ectomorphy) between the 40–49- and C60-year old age groups for en-
profile. The SAM indices indicate that, in both sexes and domorphy. Furthermore, there were no statistically sig-
all age groups, the sample presents a high degree of ho- nificant differences among the three somatotype
mogeneity of the somatopoints. The mean somatotypes of components between the 50–59- and C60-year-old

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females. However, in males, there were prominent differ-
ences in somatotype components between the 20–29-year
and other all age groups (P \ 0.01 or P \ 0.05), except for
between those 20–29 and C60 years old for endomorphy.
Otherwise, in males, there were dominant differences in
endomorphy among those 30–39 and C60, 40–49 and C60,
and 50–59 and C60 years old (P \ 0.01 or P \ 0.05).
Comparison of somatotypes between the Han
and other nationalities in China

Table 3 Somatotype distribution of Han females in Xi’an (%) Tables 6 and 7 show the comparison of somatotype com-
ponents between the Han and five other nationalities in
Somatotype Age Total
China (U test) (Zheng et al. 1996; Zhu et al. 2000a, b; Zhu
20* 30* 40* 50* 60* et al. 1997; Huang et al. 2002). There were prominent
Ecto.Endo 4.9 11.6 10.2 0.0 0.0 5.4 differences in the endomorphy of males and females be-
Balanced Endo 9.8 11.6 8.2 2.2 4.7 7.2 tween the Han and five other nationalities in China, re-
Meso.Endo 48.8 62.8 77.6 91.3 88.4 74.3 spectively (P \ 0.01). There were significant differences in
Endo-Meso 4.9 7.0 0.0 0.0 2.3 2.7
the mesomorph of males between the Han and five other
Endo.Meso 0.0 2.3 2.0 2.2 0.0 1.4
nationalities except the Mongoloid and Hui, respectively.
There were marked differences in the ectomorphy of males
Balanced Meso 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
between the Han and other five nationalities, except for the
Ecto.Meso 2.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5
Ewenki, respectively. Otherwise, there were significant
Meso-Ecto 2.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5
differences in the mesomorphy and ectomorphy of females
Meso.Ecto 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
between the Han and Hui, as well as Zhuang, respectively
Balanced Ecto 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
(P \ 0.01). However, there were no statistically significant
Endo.Ecto 9.8 0.0 0.0 2.2 4.7 3.2
differences in the mesomorphy and ectomorphy of females
Ecto-Endo 9.8 4.7 2.0 0.0 0.0 3.2
between the Han and Mongoloid, Ewenki and Oroqen
Central 7.3 0.0 0.0 2.2 0.0 1.8
populations, respectively.

Fig. 1 Distribution of the mean somatopoints for the Han nationality in Xi’an. a Mean somatotype for age/gender groups. b Distribution of the
mean somatotype by gender

Table 4 Sex differences in the somatotype components of the Han population in the five age groups in Xi’an
Age group Endomorphy Mesomorphy Ectomorphy
Years Male Female P value Male Female P value Male Female P value
Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD

20–29 5.15 ± 1.64 6.17 ± 1.51 \0.01 3.76 ± 1.22 3.52 ± 1.06 [0.05 2.52 ± 1.32 2.40 ± 1.13 [0.05
30–39 5.90 ± 1.55 6.79 ± 1.34 \0.01 4.20 ± 1.37 3.99 ± 1.03 [0.05 1.77 ± 1.24 1.84 ± 0.97 [0.05
40–49 5.66 ± 1.48 7.24 ± 1.33 \0.01 4.45 ± 1.09 4.50 ± 1.27 [0.05 1.58 ± 1.11 1.51 ± 1.02 [0.05
50–59 5.61 ± 1.29 7.61 ± 1.35 \0.01 4.43 ± 1.23 4.87 ± 1.32 \0.01 1.66 ± 1.11 1.09 ± 1.12 \0.01
C60 5.21 ± 1.39 7.42 ± 1.49 \0.01 4.46 ± 1.02 5.11 ± 1.24 \0.01 1.74 ± 1.24 0.96 ± 1.08 \0.01
Statistically significant P value (P \ 0.05)

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Discussion developed. This result indicates that the problem of over-

Somatotype of the Han nationality adults in Xi’an
The mean somatotype of the Han population is 5.6-4.2-1.8
in males and 6.7-4.2-1.6 in females. Both the male and
female samples feature a mesomorphic endomorphy (en-
domorphy is dominant, and mesomorphy is greater than
ectomorphy) profile. The three somatotype components of
all ages are dominated by endomorphy.
This means that the body fat content is high, the body
linearity decreases, and the musculature is not very
weight and obesity in Han nationality adults represents a
serious public health issue, mainly due to the changes in
the population’s lifestyle (Koletzko et al. 2012; van
Avendonk et al. 2012), such as a high-calorie diet and
reduction of physical activity (Campbell et al. 2011),
leading to a drop in the mesomorphic component and
tendency to an increase in the endomorphic component,
mainly in older females and males. This high adiposity-
type profile contributes to increasing the probability for the
population to suffer from diabetes and cardiovascular is-
sues (Feng et al. 2015; Henagan et al. 2014).

Table 5 Age differences of

Somatotype Age group Males Females
somatotype components in the
Han population in Xi’an (one- 20–29 30–39 40–49 50–59 20–29 30–39 40–49 50–59
way ANOVA)
Endomorphy 30–39 P value 0.00* 0.00*
40–49 0.00* 0.17 0.00* 0.01*
50–59 0.01* 0.10 0.79 0.00* 0.00* 0.02*
C60 0.70 0.00* 0.01* 0.03* 0.00* 0.00* 0.25 0.27
Mesomorphy 30–39 P value 0.02* 0.00*
40–49 0.00* 0.08 0.00* 0.00*
50–59 0.00* 0.10 0.91 0.00* 0.00* 0.01*
C60 0.00* 0.06 0.91 0.83 0.00* 0.00* 0.00* 0.08
Ectomorphy 30–39 P value 0.00* 0.00*
40–49 0.00* 0.18 0.00* 0.01*
50–59 0.00* 0.433 0.587 0.00* 0.00* 0.00*
C60 0.00* 0.791 0.287 0.606 0.00* 0.00* 0.00* 0.281
Statistically significant P value (P \ 0.05) with asterisks

Table 6 Comparison of
Nationality n Endomorphy Mesomorphy Ectomorphy Reference
somatotype components
between the Han and five other X SD X SD X SD
nationalities in China (males)
a,b,c,d,e b,c,e a,c,d,e
(U test) The Han nationality 207 5.6 1.4 4.2 1.2 1.8 1.3
Mongoloid 255 4.0a 1.4 4.4 1.1 2.1a 1.0 Zheng et al. (1996)
b b
Ewenki 162 3.5 1.3 5.0 1.2 1.6 1.1 Zhu et al. (2000a, b)
Oroqen 85 3.3c 1.3 4.8c 1.1 2.3c 1.5 Zhu et al. (2000a, b)
The Hui nationality 180 2.7d 0.8 4.2 1.0 2.8d 1.1 Zhu et al. (1997)
e e
The Zhuang nationality 273 1.8 0.5 3.7 1.0 3.4e 0.9 Huang et al. (2002)
a
Significant difference between the Han and Mongoloid subjects (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy
[0.05; ectomorphy \0.01)
b
Significant difference between the Han and Ewenki (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy \0.01; ecto-
morphy [0.05)
c
Significant difference between the Han and Oroqen (endomorphy\0.01; mesomorphy\0.01; ectomorphy
\0.01)
d
Significant difference between the Han and Hui populations (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy [0.05;
ectomorphy \0.01)
e
Significant difference between the Han and Zhuang populations (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy
\0.01; ectomorphy \0.01)

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Table 7 Comparison of
Nationality n Endomorphy Mesomorphy Ectomorphy Reference
somatotype components
between the Han and five other X SD X SD X SD
populations in China (Females)
(U test) The Han nationality 222 6.7a,b,c,d,e 1.6 4.2d,e 1.3 1.6d,e 1.2
a
Mongoloid 225 6.2 1.3 4.1 1.1 1.6 1.0 Zheng et al. (1996)
Ewenki 195 5.2b 1.2 4.4 1.3 1.5 1.1 Zhu et al. (2000a, b)
Oroqen 106 5.2c 1.4 4.0 1.2 1.7 1.6 Zhu et al. (2000a, b)
d d d
The Hui nationality 214 4.4 1.1 3.6 1.1 2.4 1.1 Zhu et al. (1997)
The Zhuang nationality 281 3.3e 0.9 3.2e 0.9 2.9e 1.1 Huang et al. (2002)
a
Significant difference between the Han and Mongoloid subjects (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy
[0.05; ectomorphy [0.05)
b
Significant difference between the Han and Ewenki (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy [0.05; ecto-
morphy [0.05)
c
Significant difference between the Han and Oroqen (endomorphy\0.01; mesomorphy[0.05; ectomorphy
[0.05)
d
Significant difference between the Han and Hui populations (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy \0.01;
ectomorphy \0.01)
e
Significant difference between the Han and Zhuang nationalities (endomorphy \0.01; mesomorphy
\0.01; ectomorphy \0.01)

Gender differences in Han adults
As shown in Table 4, we investigated the gender differ-
ences in the somatotype components of the Han population
in Xi’an in this study. Females tended to have significantly
higher endomorphic values. There were distinct endomor-
phic differences between males and females in all age
groups. The previous studies agreed that the mesomorphy
is higher in males and endomorphy in females in younger
American individuals (Malina et al. 2005; Arce et al.
2012). The main reason is that boys may be more involved
in recreational games associated with high levels of phy-
sical activity. Vigorous activity tends to favor muscu-
loskeletal development. The studies by Kalichman and
Kobyliansky (2006) reported that sex differences in so-
matotypes appear to be the strongest for endomorphy, with
generally higher values in females (Kalichman and
Kobyliansky 2006). Our results are consistent with these
findings (Table 4). However, interestingly, our data sug-
gested that the differences in mesomorphy or ectomorphy
were prominent between males and females in the 50–59-
and C60-year age groups, but the studies by Kalichman
and Kobyliansky (2006) noted no differences in meso-
morphy and a very small difference in ectomorphy between
males and females aged 18–30 years. This may be the re-
sult of multiple factors, such as differences in region,
ethnicity and livestyle.
Adult Han somatotypes change with age
We also noted age-related patterns of somatotype change.
There were marked differences between the 20–29-year
and all other age groups in both sexes except for between
the 40–49- and C60-year-old groups in the endomorphy of
males. There were no significant differences in somatotype
components between the 50–59- and C60-year-old groups
in females. These findings are almost consistent with
studies of Kalichman and Kobyliansky (2006). Further-
more, we observed a decrease in the mean values of en-
domorphy in both sexes for those C60 years and in the
mean values of ectomorphy in males C60. These findings
are in accord with those of Buffa et al. (2005) and
Kalichman et al. Otherwise, our results showed that after
30 years of age, the male somatotype had hardly changed.
These are not quite consistent with previous results
(Katzmarzyk and Malina 1999), but consistent with
Kalichman and Kobyliansky (2006). We would increase
the sample size for further research in the future.
Interestingly, our data indicated that mesomorphy and
ectomorphy displayed opposite age-related tendencies.
Mesomorphy increased with age in both sexes, whereas
ectomorphy tended to decrease with age in both sexes. The
previous studies of somatotype components have shown
results parallel to ours in various elderly populations
(Kalichman and Kobyliansky 2006; Buffa et al. 2005). This
finding indicated that the metabolism of the body and de-
clined with age in males. The detailed reasons also need
more meticulous research in the future.
Comparison of somatotype components
between the Han and other nationalities
The somatotype differences appear to be the strongest for
endomorphy between the Han and other five nationalities
in both sexes in China. The mean endomorphic value of the
Han was higher than those of the other five nationalities in

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China (Zheng et al. 1996; Zhu et al. 2000a, b; Zhu et al.
1997; Huang et al. 2002). This result indicated that the
subcutaneous fat was thick in Han males. This kind of
characteristic might be related to dietary components. For
example, the Mongoloid, Ewenki and Oroqen populations
are predominantly carnivorous, but the Xi’an Han prefer
pasta. Otherwise, the mean ectomorphic value of the Han
population was smaller than those of other nationalities
except for the Ewenki in males as well as females, except
for the Ewenki and Mongoloid populations. Moreover, the
results dramatically showed that for mesomorphy there is
an opposite gender trend. The mean mesomorphic value of
the Han population is lower than those of other nation-
alities except for the Ewenki and Oroqen in males; the
mean mesomorphic value of the Han population is higher
than those of other nationalities except for the Ewenki in
females. These findings indicate remarkable differences in
the somatotype components between the Xi’an Han and
other five nationalities in China in males and females.
These findings demonstrated that the subcutaneous fat of
Xi’an Han males and females was thicker than that of other
nationalities. The Han population’s skeletal and muscular
systems were generally developed; the bodily linearity was
lower in males but moderate in females. This characteristic,
in addition to genetic and race-related differences, may
also be factors associated with their respective economic
and cultural level, the geography and climate, lifestyle and
eating habits, etc.
In conclusion, our data demonstrated that the somato-
type of the Han population in Xi’an, China, has a pre-
dominantly mesomorphic endomorph profile. The
endomorphic component showed distinct differences be-
tween ages/genders, respectively.
There were remarkable differences in the somatotype
components between the Xi’an Han and five other na-
tionalities in China in males and females.
Acknowledgments This work was supported by a grant from the
Key Project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (no.
30830062 to Lian-Bin Zheng and Huan-Jiu Xi).
Conflict of interest None.
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