LONDON: Curvy women have been admired for their sensual figures. But, a new study has found that ladies with large hips and small waists are cleverer too, than those with apple-shaped bodies.

In fact, according to international researchers, women with an hourglass figure are not only intelligent, they also give birth to brighter children, The Sunday Times reported in London on Sunday.

"The fat around fuller hips and thighs holds higher levels of omega3 fatty acids which are essential for the growth of the brain during pregnancy," the researchers were quoted as saying.

The scientists at the Universities of Pittsburgh and California came to the conclusion after analysing data from a study of 16,000 women and girls, which collected details of their body measurements and their scores in cognitive tests.

The team found that those women with a greater difference between the waist and hips scored significantly higher on the tests, as did their children -- "possibly a result of higher levels of Omega3 fatty acids on the hips".

The research has explained why children born to teenage mothers do worse in cognitive tests: Their mothers may have had insufficient stores of the best fatty acids.

"The cognitive development of their children is reduced, and their own cognitive development is impaired compared with those mothers with a later first birth," the researchers were quoted as saying.

The study also noted, however, that children born to teenage girls with traditional hourglass figures seemed to be protected from this phenomenon and did better in tests.