Assessment of percent body fat content in young and middle aged men: skinfold method v/s girth method. 1996

S S Hegde, and S R Ahuja
Dept of Physiology, Grant Medical College, Byculla, Bombay, Maharashtra.

Percent body fat content was found in apparently normal healthy 30 young (17-20 Yrs.) and 30 middle aged men (30-46 Yrs.) by measuring the skinfold and girth. None of the subjects were athletes or did regular physical exercise. Body density was calculated using mean of the four skinfold measurements as per the equations advocated by Durnin and Womersley, while percent body fat content was calculated from the body density by the Siri's equation. The mean % body fat content by this method in young men was 15.87 +/- 3.85% and in middle aged men was 24.75 +/- 3.55%. Ten percent of the young subjects and 90% of the middle aged subjects were found to be obese. Percent body fat content was also calculated from the girth measurements as advocated by McArdle et al. The mean of % body fat content with this method was 14.91 +/- 3.82% in young men and 24.30 +/- 3.35% in middle aged men. On comparison, the difference in percent body fat content calculated by both the methods was found to be significant in young men but not for middle aged men. The correlation, coefficient between girth method and skinfold method was 0.95 in case of young men and 0.90 for middle aged men. Therefore, we advocate that girth measurements can be used to determine percent body fat content, main advantage being simplicity of technique and requirement of inexpensive instruments for measurement.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D008875 Middle Aged An adult aged 45 - 64 years. Middle Age
D009765 Obesity A status with BODY WEIGHT that is grossly above the recommended standards, usually due to accumulation of excess FATS in the body. The standards may vary with age, sex, genetic or cultural background. In the BODY MASS INDEX, a BMI greater than 30.0 kg/m2 is considered obese, and a BMI greater than 40.0 kg/m2 is considered morbidly obese (MORBID OBESITY).
D001823 Body Composition The relative amounts of various components in the body, such as percentage of body fat. Body Compositions,Composition, Body,Compositions, Body
D001824 Body Constitution The physical characteristics of the body, including the mode of performance of functions, the activity of metabolic processes, the manner and degree of reactions to stimuli, and power of resistance to the attack of pathogenic organisms. Body Constitutions,Constitution, Body,Constitutions, Body
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000273 Adipose Tissue Specialized connective tissue composed of fat cells (ADIPOCYTES). It is the site of stored FATS, usually in the form of TRIGLYCERIDES. In mammals, there are two types of adipose tissue, the WHITE FAT and the BROWN FAT. Their relative distributions vary in different species with most adipose tissue being white. Fatty Tissue,Body Fat,Fat Pad,Fat Pads,Pad, Fat,Pads, Fat,Tissue, Adipose,Tissue, Fatty
D000293 Adolescent A person 13 to 18 years of age. Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths
D000328 Adult A person having attained full growth or maturity. Adults are of 19 through 44 years of age. For a person between 19 and 24 years of age, YOUNG ADULT is available. Adults
D000367 Age Factors Age as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or the effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from AGING, a physiological process, and TIME FACTORS which refers only to the passage of time. Age Reporting,Age Factor,Factor, Age,Factors, Age

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