reasts appear to act as a sexual signal, and also as commercials for high milk production capacity (Diamond, 1996, Turner, 1999). They have a high mechanical cost and the ability to grow large, symmetrical breasts is probably an honest signal of gene quality. The supposed male obsession with large breasts therefore makes sense. This is a good point to discuss the importance of penis size, as well. The supposed preference for large penises developed, unlike breasts, in connection to its signal of virility and also in its ability to establish dominance over others of the same sex, (Diamond, 1996) and not as an sincere advertisement of good genes.Until puberty, male and female children have similar waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). At puberty, under the influence of sex hormones, females lose fat from the stomach and put it on the hips, giving them a WHR typically between .67- .80 compared with a male figure of .85- .95 (Turner, 1999). This difference is maintained until menopause, when female WHRs again change towards the male figure. Therefore, one reason males are interested in female shape is that it gives an indication whether or not the female is of childbearing age. At good waist- hip ratio (around 0.7) shows that the female in question is not too young, not too old, and not pregnant (it certainly would not have been adaptive to be attractive to women who are already pregnant!). It is also a signal of good health, because “estrogen causes fat to be laid down on the hips and thighs, not the waist” (Mestel, 1999 p. 85) Related to this is the idea of body weight. An unfakeable sign of fitness is muscles or fat concentrated in readily visible parts. Muscles in men show their ability to gather food, build houses and defeat rivals. Both males and females have learned to respond to muscles as truthful signals. On women, fat in the butt, breasts and hips attract attention (hopefully of a high quality male!). These are spo...
