Comprehensive Evaluation of Selected Methods for Assessing Human Body Composition.

Abstract

Abstract. The present study investigated the validity, reliability, objectivity, and practicability of methods with skinfold caliper (SF), ultrasound (US), bioelectrical impedance (BI), and sulfur hexafluoride (SHD) using identical subjects, and evaluated comprehensive usefulness by comparing selected methods or equations. In examining validity, underwater weighing (UW) was employed to obtain the criterion of validity. The subjects were healthy Japanese, 16 males and 15 females, aged 18 to 32 years. The prediction equation developed by Nakadomo et al. (1990b) was considered to be suitable for BI. With respect to the validity, BI and SHD assessing total body when estimating body composition would be more valid than those assessing partial subcutaneous skinfold thickness. A comprehensive evaluation through an examination with respect to the validity, reliability, objectivity, and practicability suggests that the BI could be the best method to assess human body composition in vivo. (Appl Human Sci, 18 (2): 43-51, 1999)

The Influence of Posture Change on Measurements of Relative Body Fat in the Bioimpedance Analysis Method.

“…The reliabilities of both BIA methods were also similar to or higher than those of the previous studies (Yoshimura et al, 1997;Demura et al, 1999). There is no agreement on the validity of %BF of the BIA method when using %BF based on the UW method as a criterion.…”

“…bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), skinfold method (SKF), and ultrasound method (US), have been widely used in field and clinical settings (Demura et al, 1999;Heyward and Stolarczyk, 1996). The BIA method, in which total body water and BD are estimated using the bioimpedance between the right hand and the right foot in a lying position (H-F BIA method), has been mainly used.…”

Redefining overweight and obesity in rheumatoid arthritis patients

“…In recent years, a bioelectrical impedance method for the estimation of BF in different populations has become popular and widely recommended, as it is reliable, objective, practical, relatively inexpensive and does not require highly trained personnel 32 33. The validity of this method has been confirmed in various studies 32 36 – 39.…”

Cigarette smoking significantly increases basal metabolic rate in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

“…Body mass was measured to the nearest 0.1 kg and body composition was evaluated by bioelectrical impedance, using a segmental body composition analyser (Tanita BC 418 MA, Tanita, Tokyo, Japan). Several other methods for assessing body composition, such as dual energy x ray absorptiometry, underwater weighing, total body water, and total body nitrogen may be superior for studies assessing specifically body composition,20 21 but are cumbersome and require specialised equipment and personnel. Bioelectrical impedance, particularly based on four electrodes as in this study, has been shown to be accurate in the general population22 as well as in patients with RA,20 and has the advantage of simplicity and reproducibility in the routine clinical setting 10.…”