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Body adiposity index

About: Body adiposity index is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1403 publications have been published within this topic receiving 49870 citations. The topic is also known as: BAI.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Skinfold thicknesses at four sites – biceps, triceps, subscapular and supra-iliac – and total body density were measured on 209 males and 272 females aged from 16 to 72 years, finding it necessary to use the logarithm of skinfold measurements in order to achieve a linear relationship with body density.
Abstract: The fat content of the human body has physiological and medical importance. It may influence morbidity and mortality, it may aIter the effectiveness of drugs and anaesthetics, and it may affect the ability to withstand exposure to cold and starvation. Thus the measurement of the total body fat provides useful information. In many people, but by no means everyone, a moderately satisfactory estimate of the body fat content can be obtained from the height and weight. However, for more precise evaluation several methods are available which give a reasonably accurate measure of body fat both in normal subjects and in individuals with unusual body builds. Most of these methods are based on the assumption that the body can be considered to consist of two compartments of relatively constant composition but which are distinctly different; these compartments are: (I) the body fat, which includes the entire content of chemical fat or lipids in the body, and (2) the fat-free mass (FFM), which includes all the rest of the body apart from fat. The body fat compartment is anhydrous, contains no potassium and has a fairly constant density of about 0.90 x 103 kg/m3. The fat-free compartment on the other hand probably has a fairly constant density of about 1.10 x 103 kg/m3, a potassium content of about 68 mequiv./kg in males (about 10% less in females) and a water content of about 720 g/kg. Thus measurement of body density or of total body K or of total body water allows a calculation of the relative proportion of these two compartments in the body and therefore also of the total fat content. The accuracy of these measures, however, is limited by the variability of the composition and density of the fat-free compartment in different individuals. In particular, individuals with a relatively high or

6,287 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
01 May 2011-Obesity
TL;DR: A new parameter, the body adiposity index (BAI), which can be calculated from hip circumference and height only, can be used in the clinical setting even in remote locations with very limited access to reliable scales and estimates %adiposity directly.
Abstract: Obesity is a growing problem in the United States and throughout the world. It is a risk factor for many chronic diseases. The BMI has been used to assess body fat for almost 200 years. BMI is known to be of limited accuracy, and is different for males and females with similar %body adiposity. Here, we define an alternative parameter, the body adiposity index (BAI = ((hip circumference)/((height)1.5) − 18)). The BAI can be used to reflect %body fat for adult men and women of differing ethnicities without numerical correction. We used a population study, the “BetaGene” study, to develop the new index of body adiposity. %Body fat, as measured by the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), was used as a “gold standard” for validation. Hip circumference (R = 0.602) and height (R = −0.524) are strongly correlated with %body fat and therefore chosen as principal anthropometric measures on which we base BAI. The BAI measure was validated in the “Triglyceride and Cardiovascular Risk in African-Americans (TARA)” study of African Americans. Correlation between DXA-derived %adiposity and the BAI was R = 0.85 for TARA with a concordance of C_b = 0.95. BAI can be measured without weighing, which may render it useful in settings where measuring accurate body weight is problematic. In summary, we have defined a new parameter, the BAI, which can be calculated from hip circumference and height only. It can be used in the clinical setting even in remote locations with very limited access to reliable scales. The BAI estimates %adiposity directly.

779 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: BMI, WC, and WSR perform similarly as indicators of body fatness and are more closely related to each other than with percentage body fat.

722 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results show that the relationship between BF% and BMI is different between Singaporeans and Caucasians and also among the three ethnic groups in Singapore, and the cut-off points for obesity in Singapore based on the BMI would need to be lowered.
Abstract: Objective To study the relationship between body fat percentage and body mass index (BMI) in three different ethnic groups in Singapore (Chinese, Malays and Indians) in order to evaluate the validity of the BMI cut-off points for obesity. Design Cross-sectional study. Subjects Two-hundred and ninety-one subjects, purposively selected to ensure adequate representation of range of age and BMI of the general adult population, with almost equal numbers from each ethnic and gender group. Measurements Body weight, body height, sitting height, wrist and femoral widths, skinfold thicknesses, total body water by deuterium oxide dilution, densitometry with Bodpod(R) and bone mineral content with Hologic(R) QDR-4500. Body fat percentage was calculated using a four-compartment model. Results Compared with body fat percentage (BF%) obtained using the reference method, BF% for the Singaporean Chinese, Malays and Indians were under-predicted by BMI, sex and age when an equation developed in a Caucasian population was used. The mean prediction error ranged from 2.7% to 5.6% body fat. The BMI/BF% relationship was also different among the three Singaporean groups, with Indians having the highest BF% and Chinese the lowest for the same BMI. These differences could be ascribed to differences in body build. It was also found that for the same amount of body fat as Caucasians who have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 (cut-off for obesity as defined by WHO), the BMI cut-off points for obesity would have to be about 27 kg/m2 for Chinese and Malays and 26 kg/m2 for Indians. Conclusions The results show that the relationship between BF% and BMI is different between Singaporeans and Caucasians and also among the three ethnic groups in Singapore. If obesity is regarded as an excess of body fat and not as an excess of weight (increased BMI), the cut-off points for obesity in Singapore based on the BMI would need to be lowered. This would have immense public health implications in terms of policy related to obesity prevention and management.

565 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: BMI is not an equivalent measure of the percent body fat for each race-sex group, and it may be important to consider the maturation stage, race, gender, and distribution of body fat in the interpretation of the results.
Abstract: Objective: To evaluate whether body mass index (BMI) is a representative equivalent measure of body fatness independent of age, race, gender, sexual maturation, and distribution of fat in children and adolescents. Study design: Cross-sectional study of 192 healthy subjects (100 boys and 92 girls, 103 white and 89 black) age 7 to 17 years. Methods. Height and weight were measured in the standard fashion, and BMI (kg/m) was calculated from these values. Fat mass and percent body fat were determined using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Sexual maturation was evaluated by physical assessment. Distribution of fat was determined by the waist:hip ratio. Results: There were no significant differences by gender and ethnic group for any of the demographic or anthropometric variables, except waist:hip ratio, which was higher in white compared with black boys. BMI was significantly and positively correlated with age, stage of maturation, and all of the anthropometric variables in each race-sex group. The correlation of maturation stage with BMI was stronger than the correlation between age and BMI. A multiple regression analysis showed that BMI, gender, race, sexual maturation, and distribution of fat were all significant independent correlates of the percent body fat (multiple R = .77). The percent body fat-BMI relationship was dependent on the stage of sexual maturation, gender (for an equivalent BMI, girls have greater amounts of body fat than boys), race (for equivalent BMI, whites have higher body fat than blacks), and waist:hip ratio (for equivalent BMI, those with central obesity have greater body fatness than those with peripheral obesity). Conclusion: BMI is not an equivalent measure of the percent body fat for each race-sex group. When BMI is used as a measure of body fatness in a research or clinical setting, particularly when comparisons are made across race and gender, it may be important to consider the maturation stage, race, gender, and distribution of body fat in the interpretation of the results.

559 citations


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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
20241
20235
202243
202149
202033
201941