A research done by Professor Berit Heitmann, of Copenhagen University Hospital has found the women and men with skinny legs are more likely to contract heart disease; bad news for Kate Moss, Victoria Beckham, Kylie and others looking to get a super-model body shape.

The study looked at the thigh size of 3,000 over 20 years. People with thigh sizes below 24 in (or 60 cm), even after other factors like smoking and high cholesterol  were taken into account, showed higher levels of heart disease. It is thought that narrow thighs could be associated with too little muscle mass and this may help doctors identify at-risk patients.

In Britain cononary heart disease (CHD) is most common cause of premature death, claiming over 94,000 lives a year.

A state from the British Heart Foundation suggested that rather focussing on thigh size, adults should aim to lower the risk of CHD by performing at least 30 minutes of exercise a day.