Body Fat Percentage

 

Body Fat Percentage

Body Fat Percentage

To determine the percentage of body fat in an organism, divide its total mass by its total mass, then multiply the result by 100. This covers body fat that is stored as well as that which is required. Life support and reproduction depend on essential body fat. Women have a higher proportion of essential body fat than men do because of hormonal changes and the demands of childbirth.

Adipose tissue accumulates fat, which is part of the storage body fat that shields the abdominal and chest organs. The proportion of body fat may be calculated using a variety of techniques, including bioelectrical impedance analysis and calipers.

Body fat percentage is a measure of fitness level since it is the only bodily parameter that is able to identify an individual's relative body composition without considering height or weight. Comparing the adiposity of people of various heights and weights is made possible by the commonly used body mass index (BMI).

Other measures of body fat provide more accurate findings because of variations in body composition; for instance, those with bigger bones or more muscle mass will have higher BMIs. This is because BMI mainly rises as adiposity increases. BMI is therefore a good measure of general fitness for a big population, but it's not a good way to assess a person's health.

Typical body fat amounts

Epidemiology shows that a person's body fat percentage changes with age and sex. Numerous theoretical perspectives exist about the connections among body fat percentage, athletic ability, health, etc. This has led to varying suggestions for the optimal percentages of body fat from various authorities.

This figure shows the average percentage of body fat among Americans from 1999 to 2004 based on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) in the United States.

Male body fat percentages varied from 23% when they were 16–19 years old to 31% when they were 60–79 years old. At ages 8–11 and 60–79, the mean proportion of body fat in females was 32% and 42%, respectively. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that in order to lead a normal, healthy life, women require at least 9% more body fat than males.

According to statistics from the 2003–2006 NHANES survey, less than 10% of American people had the "normal" body fat percentage, which is 5–20% for men and 8–30% for women.

31% of noninstitutionalized U.S. The 2017–2018 NHANES survey found that 43% of adults aged 20–74 are obese, including 9% who are extremely fat, and that 43% are overweight.[5]. Of these, just 26% were underweight or of normal weight.

The average body fat percentages of American Olympians in 1983 were 6–13% for men and 14–22% for women.

Body fat guidelines

When necessary fat levels fall below a certain threshold, physical and physiological health deteriorate, and death is unavoidable.

A University of Arizona study found that the ideal body fat percentage for sports performance is 12–18% for women and 6–15% for men. This suggests that body fat may have an impact on athletic performance.

The bodybuilders' optimal body fat range for competing. Expert personal trainers advise contestants to maintain that incredibly low body fat percentage alone throughout the competition. However, given (a) the methods to test such levels are inherently flawed and imprecise, as shown below, and (b) 4–6% is typically regarded as a physiological minimum for male humans, it is uncertain whether such levels are ever truly reached.

Measurement techniques

Human fat cells are nearly completely made up of pure triglycerides, which have an average density of around 0.9 kilos per liter, regardless of where they are derived from. In the majority of contemporary body composition labs, the density of the "fat-free mass" is measured at 1.1 kilos per liter.

A well-designed weighing equipment may be used to precisely assess body density by submerging a person completely in water and calculating the amount of water displaced based on the weight of the displaced water. Air in the lungs and other gases in the bodily compartments are adjusted for buoyancy. Because body components vary normally, the uncertainty in estimating body fat would be around ± 3.8% of body weight if there were no mistakes at all in determining body density.

Near-infrared interactance

It transmits an infrared laser beam into the biceps. The underlying muscle reflects the light, which the fat then absorbs. The procedure is quick, safe, non-invasive, and simple to use.

Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry

More recently, bone mineral density, body composition, and body fat percentage have been determined using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, or DXA (previously DEXA).

Of the two X-ray energies used to scan the body, fat absorbs more of one than the other. By subtracting one picture from another, a computer can determine how much fat there is at each location in relation to other tissues. The total body composition may be calculated by adding up all of the images.

Expansions

The proportion of body fat may be more precisely calculated using a number of more complex techniques. Some, called multicompartment models, may incorporate separate measurements of body water (by the dilution principle with isotopically labeled water) and body volume (either by water displacement or air plethysmography), in addition to the DXA assessment of bone. Other components, including potassium levels in the body, can be evaluated separately.