Why men rush for curvy women

Back in 2014, the naked images of Kim Kardashian on Paper Magazine with the headline ‘Break the Internet Kim Kardashian’ sparked off debates as to how far a woman should be allowed to expose her body to the world through public media. Many bashed her for objectifying the female body. There was also a clique who praised her bravery saying that she reserves the right to express herself.

I am sure; a lot of men must have spent a good percentage of their time trawling the images online. Kim’s greatest assets, her gourd-like posterior, have kept her fame at an all-time high in recent months.

The science of beauty

Men, even the ones who sneer at her ‘wretched’ ways, may not be that condescending when in private (with Kim on their laptop). Why do men seem so fascinated by round and firm female behinds? Could it be because it is nature’s trap to profile through populations; a form of natural selection to give preference to ‘superior’ offsprings?

A team of evolutionary scientists from New Zealand have suggested that male attraction to a large female bottom is due to an ingrained preference for women with a small ‘waist to hip ratio.’

The smaller the waist in relation to the hip, the more attractive a woman appears to a man. Previously documented researchers have found women with small waists and big hips have higher levels of fertility compared to everybody else.

Good fertility

There is some amount of truth in this. According to Dr John Ong’ech of KNH, a certain amount of fat in the body of a woman is required to elevate her fertility levels. The fat prepares her body to carry the growing foetus until nine months are over. It plays a protective role to the baby as long as it is inside the womb. However, Ong’ech adds that the amount of good fat for pregnancy cannot be measured on the scales of beauty. “What is paramount is if the woman is healthy enough to carry the baby,” says Ong’ech.

Intelligence

A separate study of 16,000 women by the Universities of Pittsburgh and California in 2007 found that curves are linked with intelligence. According to the results, first carried by UK’s Mail Online, the researchers discovered that women with a greater difference between the waist and hips scored much higher on tests, as do their children.

The explanation given: “fat around curvy hips and thighs holds higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for the growth of the brain during pregnancy.”

This, in Ong’ech’s opinion, is hogwash with no tangible evidence to prove the findings. As far as he is concerned, intelligence is closely linked to genetics than the shape or size of a woman.

He agrees though that a rounder bottom gives the illusion of a wider pelvic area, which – to many – is as a sign of good fertility.

How age affects your fertility

When it comes to fertility, age matters. Many people today wait until they’re older to have children. But fertility declines over time, at least according to Dr Ong’ech.

Biological clock

“Women are at their best fertility between 24 and 29 years of age,” he says. “Beyond this, the probability of getting another baby becomes smaller with time. At the same time, chances of genetic mutations are higher when both men and women shoes to conceive at older ages.”

In women, fertility declines rapidly after the age of 35, particularly due to the decline in the quality of the eggs released by the ovaries. It has been determined that up to one-third of couples in which the woman is over 35 have fertility problems. This rises to two-thirds when the woman is over 40.

Men’s fertility gradually declines from around the age of 40, but most men are able to father children into their 50s and beyond, but with higher risks of deformities.