The Measurement of Body Composition

Ultrasound (A-scan mode) and skinfold methods were evaluated in the measurement of subcutaneous fat thickness and prediction of total fat weight (by whole body potassium counting). Based on intraobserver correlations on 39 men at 15 body sites, skinfold caliper measurements were more reproducible than ones obtained by ultrasound. Measurements made with the two techniques at the same site typically produced different mean estimates of fat thickness. However, scores were often highly correlated with each other, indicating similar relative rankings of subjects by each technique. Skinfolds were more highly correlated with total fat weight than were ultrasound measurements, but body weight. Anthropometric measurements were highly correlated with fatness because of their association with body weight, and when this relationship was statistically controlled for, they typically lost their predictive effectiveness. Multiple regression analyses revealed that the best predictors of fat weight were body weight along with skinfold and ultrasound measurements. These results suggest that skinfolds are a more effective means of assessing subcutaneous fat than ultrasound, especially when the large difference in cost of equipment is considered.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of ultrasound and skinfold measurements in assessment of subcutaneous and total fatness

Borkan¹,

Hults²,

Cardarelli

et al. 1982

“…or body compositional measurements, and physical examination either separately or in combination. It has been the subject of a number of monographs and reviews (Keys and Brozek, 1953;Moore et aI., 1963;ICNND, 1963;Brozek, 1963;JeII iffe, 1966;Malina, 1980), the most recent of which (Simopoulos, 1982) describes new approaches to the measurement of nutritional status, suggesting many promising avenues for future research in this field. The reader is referred to these sources for details.…”

Section: Nutritional Statusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutritional status and physical work capacity

Spurr

1983

118

The functional consequences of nutritional intake and resulting nutritional status are reviewed in terms of maximal oxygen consumption, physical work capacity, heart rate response to exercise, work productivity, and endurance at submaximal work loads. The results of both acute (laboratory) and chronic (naturally occurring) malnutrition are considered as well as the effects of dietary supplementation and recovery from previously existing undernutrition. Obesity and anemia are also treated as separate but related nutritional entities.

“…Validity of fat estimates is based upon the assumption that the densities of fat (0.90 gm/cm3) and lean (1.10 gm/cm3) components are known and are constant; and that adults are identical in composition except for variability in the proportion of fatness (Siri, 1961). I t should be emphasized that the assumptions are based on the young adult reference male, so that application of formulas to children may give elevated fat estimates (Malina, 1969(Malina, , 1980b. Density differences between children and adults may also be due to hydration differences and lower bone densities in the former.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Growth and body composition of Mexican‐American boys 9 through 14 years of age

Zavaleta¹,

Malina

1982

Self Cite

The growth status and densitometric estimates of body composition are considered in a cross-sectional sample of 95 Mexican-American boys, 9 through 14 years of age, from lower socioeconomic circumstances. A series of 19 measurements were taken on each boy, including measures of size, proportions, skeletal breadths, limb circumferences, skinfolds, and grip strength. Body density was determined by underwater weighing and residual volume was predicted. Density determinations were converted to percentage body fat using the average of two estimates from the equations of Brozek et al. (1963) and Siri (1956). Relative fatness was also converted to lean body mass and fat weight in kilograms. The growth status of the boys was compared to reference data for American White boys in the U. S. Health examination Survey. The Mexican-American boys are shorter and lighter than the reference data, and smaller in all anthropometric dimensions except skinfolds, which are variable. The subscapular and midaxillary skinfolds are similar in the two samples, while the triceps, medial calf, and suprailiac skinfolds are thinner in Mexican-American boys. Regressions of the four body composition estimates on age show significant age effects only for lean body mass and fat weight. Density and percentage fat do not vary significantly with age. Compared to samples of boys in the same age range, the Mexican-American boys generally have a greater body density. Correlations between skinfold thicknesses and body density are generally lower in the Mexican-American boys compared to other samples. Two equations for the prediction of body density in Mexican-American boys are offered.