PLoS One July 2017 PMID 27257677

The Body and the Beautiful: Health, Attractiveness and Body Composition in Men's and Women's Bodies.

Mary-Ellen Brierley, Kevin R Brooks, Jonathan Mond, Richard J Stevenson, Ian D Stephen

Download social card

Mentions

28
Peak: 6 in Aug 2025
across 4 sources since May 2020

Extended reach

256,221
potential audience

Total likes

6,188

Video views

218,852

Mentions per month

May 2020 – Sep 2025

Where it's discussed

  • X / Twitter11 posts
  • News11 articles
  • YouTube3 videos
  • Facebook3 posts

AI synopsis

What people are saying

Many discussions highlight that cultural influences significantly impact ideals of attractiveness, with comments about preferences for low body fat being culturally driven. For example, references to scientific findings about the discrepancy between attractive and healthy fat levels and the mention of epidemiological evidence indicate a meaningful engagement with the research, while some comments critique anecdotal opinions, reflecting the ongoing debate about societal beauty standards versus scientific health facts.

AgreementModerate agreement

Most discussions acknowledge that cultural influences shape beauty standards and recognize the scientific findings about preferred body fat levels being below healthy ranges.

InterestModerate interest

Participants show moderate interest, engaging with both the scientific details and cultural aspects, indicating a curiosity about how perceptions of attractiveness relate to health and societal norms.

EngagementModerate engagement

Comments reflect a thoughtful engagement, with references to research, comparisons to epidemiological evidence, and personal opinions, suggesting a willingness to analyze and debate the topic deeply.

ImpactModerate impact

The discussions seem to influence perceptions, emphasizing that cultural ideals may distort what is healthy, which could potentially impact attitudes towards body image and health choices.

Abstract in brief

  • The study explores how perceptions of attractiveness and health relate to body composition, finding that women tend to prefer lower fat levels than what is physiologically healthy, while men’s ideal body composition aligns more closely with healthy ranges.
  • Participants manipulated images to optimize perceived health and attractiveness, revealing that attractiveness preferences often deviate from actual healthy body parameters, especially for women.
  • The findings suggest that cultural or internalized body standards may influence perceptions of attractiveness beyond just physiological health, indicating a complex relationship between health, beauty ideals, and societal influences.]

Top posts

Most liked on X and Bluesky
Ghaïs Guelaïa
@GeekNfit · X

Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L Mais ce qui en ressort, pour les hommes comme pour les femmes, ce que la préférence va du côté peu de masse grasse. https://t.co/CtlNywB9tT. Et je trouve https://t.co/wLBBftvZl0

Aug 19, 2025 · 35 likes · 4 shares · 12,940 followers View post →
junglehoney
@KruseYouri · X

"The most attractive apparent fat mass for female bodies was significantly lower than the healthiest appearing fat mass (and was lower than the physiologically healthy range), with no significant difference for muscle mass." https://t.co/Q6Eo666uuB

Feb 14, 2024 · 12 likes · 1 share · 12,886 followers View post →
Siberian fox
@SilverVVulpes · X

The congruent with epidemiological evidence bit at the end is important. You could say "hem hem this is stated but the cavemind is tracking the correlates of true fertility" but in reality no,BMI that low correlates with things like amenorrhea, for example https://t.co/VSnRYTOwOo https://t.co/4uftO4LbDW

Oct 18, 2022 · 6 likes · 6,291 followers View post →
mismo algarroba en bluski
@DrXaverius · X

@cocainavegana si es que ya no las famosas, lo que parece que gusta más como ideal de belleza es IMC tan bajo que es insano y da amenorrea entre otras cosas lol https://t.co/jFkq1dlBpA

May 21, 2020 · 1 share · 2,945 followers View post →
Piétontaffeur
@atelassu · X

RT @GeekNfit: Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L M…

Aug 19, 2025 · 4 shares · 827 followers View post →
Michael Seven
@mike_seven777 · X

@RobbieJ377 @BillyM2k Women preferred men closer to 13% body fat, which tends to be healthier and more sustainable for most guys. This aligns with our previous survey results and the overall body of research (study). https://t.co/pK2qphltag Very anecdotal what you are referring to. I will

Aug 3, 2023 · 619 followers View post →

All mentions

Le Nounours Bipolaire
@nounours_bipol_ · X

RT @GeekNfit: Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L M…

Aug 20, 2025 · 4 shares · 88 followers View post →
KC Cabane123 in my blood
@KcQuentin · X

RT @GeekNfit: Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L M…

Aug 19, 2025 · 4 shares · 36 followers View post →
T.D
@Thib_Ode · X

RT @GeekNfit: Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L M…

Aug 19, 2025 · 4 shares · 54 followers View post →
Piétontaffeur
@atelassu · X

RT @GeekNfit: Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L M…

Aug 19, 2025 · 4 shares · 827 followers View post →
Ghaïs Guelaïa
@GeekNfit · X

Quant à des préférences personnelles, il semblerait que ce soit avant tout drivé par le culturel. https://t.co/YYJMj8q46L Mais ce qui en ressort, pour les hommes comme pour les femmes, ce que la préférence va du côté peu de masse grasse. https://t.co/CtlNywB9tT. Et je trouve https://t.co/wLBBftvZl0

Aug 19, 2025 · 35 likes · 4 shares · 12,940 followers View post →
Jimjim001
@Jimjim0013 · X

@Rothmus Let’s look at the science and not a single woman’s anecdotal journalism… Title: The Body and the Beautiful: Health, Attractiveness and Body Composition in Men’s and Women’s Bodies (Brierley et al., PLOS ONE, 2016)

Jul 26, 2025 · 21 followers View post →
junglehoney
@KruseYouri · X

"The most attractive apparent fat mass for female bodies was significantly lower than the healthiest appearing fat mass (and was lower than the physiologically healthy range), with no significant difference for muscle mass." https://t.co/Q6Eo666uuB

Feb 14, 2024 · 12 likes · 1 share · 12,886 followers View post →
Michael Seven
@mike_seven777 · X

@BillyM2k Women preferred men closer to 13% body fat, which tends to be healthier and more sustainable for most guys. This aligns with our previous survey results and the overall body of research (study). https://t.co/pK2qphltag

Aug 3, 2023 · 619 followers View post →
Michael Seven
@mike_seven777 · X

@RobbieJ377 @BillyM2k Women preferred men closer to 13% body fat, which tends to be healthier and more sustainable for most guys. This aligns with our previous survey results and the overall body of research (study). https://t.co/pK2qphltag Very anecdotal what you are referring to. I will

Aug 3, 2023 · 619 followers View post →
Siberian fox
@SilverVVulpes · X

The congruent with epidemiological evidence bit at the end is important. You could say "hem hem this is stated but the cavemind is tracking the correlates of true fertility" but in reality no,BMI that low correlates with things like amenorrhea, for example https://t.co/VSnRYTOwOo https://t.co/4uftO4LbDW

Oct 18, 2022 · 6 likes · 6,291 followers View post →
mismo algarroba en bluski
@DrXaverius · X

@cocainavegana si es que ya no las famosas, lo que parece que gusta más como ideal de belleza es IMC tan bajo que es insano y da amenorrea entre otras cosas lol https://t.co/jFkq1dlBpA

May 21, 2020 · 1 share · 2,945 followers View post →