The average body size of French people, particularly French women, is the smallest in Europe. The average height of Europeans increases from south to north, but this is not the case with body size. Conversely, across Europe, and especially in France, body characteristics vary widely according to social characteristics. Body size increases with age and decreases with levels of education, variations that are more marked amongst women. For women, body size decreases with income, whereas for men it increases. Being underweight is essentially a female issue, whilst being overweight remains a male one. Women are generally smaller in body size than men, but there are more women who are severely obese.