BACKGROUND: Body weight scales to height with a power of ≈2, thus forming the basis of body mass index (weight/height(2)). The corresponding scaling of body composition to height has not been established in a representative sample of US adults. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to examine the scaling of weight, fat, fat-free mass, and bone mineral content to height. DESIGN: Adult non-Hispanic white (NHW), non-Hispanic black (NHB), and Mexican American National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) participants were included in allometric analyses if they had complete age, weight, height, and body-composition data as measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Powers of height in allometric regression models were developed for each measure and adjusted for age. RESULTS: The analyses included 13,183 subjects (6699 NHW, 3015 NHB, and 3469 Mexican American). The scaling of weight to height across sex-race groups provided powers (mean ± SE) ranging from 1.85 ± 0.12 in Mexican American women to 2.48 ± 0.17 in Mexican American men. Powers of height for body composition similarly ranged widely and were often outside the 95% CI for a power of 2. Of the 3 body-composition measures, the mean age-adjusted powers of height rounded to 2 as the nearest integer in 16 of 18 sex-race groups. CONCLUSIONS: Adult weight and body composition scale to height with variable age-adjusted powers that are sometimes outside the 95% CI for a power of 2 but frequently round to 2 as the nearest integer. These observations have implications for developing height-adjusted body-composition indexes.
BACKGROUND: Body weight scales to height with a power of ≈2, thus forming the basis of body mass index (weight/height(2)). The corresponding scaling of body composition to height has not been established in a representative sample of US adults. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to examine the scaling of weight, fat, fat-free mass, and bone mineral content to height. DESIGN: Adult non-Hispanic white (NHW), non-Hispanic black (NHB), and Mexican American National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) participants were included in allometric analyses if they had complete age, weight, height, and body-composition data as measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Powers of height in allometric regression models were developed for each measure and adjusted for age. RESULTS: The analyses included 13,183 subjects (6699 NHW, 3015 NHB, and 3469 Mexican American). The scaling of weight to height across sex-race groups provided powers (mean ± SE) ranging from 1.85 ± 0.12 in Mexican American women to 2.48 ± 0.17 in Mexican American men. Powers of height for body composition similarly ranged widely and were often outside the 95% CI for a power of 2. Of the 3 body-composition measures, the mean age-adjusted powers of height rounded to 2 as the nearest integer in 16 of 18 sex-race groups. CONCLUSIONS: Adult weight and body composition scale to height with variable age-adjusted powers that are sometimes outside the 95% CI for a power of 2 but frequently round to 2 as the nearest integer. These observations have implications for developing height-adjusted body-composition indexes.
Authors: B A Derstine; S A Holcombe; R L Goulson; B E Ross; N C Wang; J A Sullivan; G L Su; S C Wang Journal: J Nutr Health Aging Date: 2017 Impact factor: 4.075
Authors: John M Schuna; Courtney M Peterson; Diana M Thomas; Moonseong Heo; Sangmo Hong; Woong Choi; Steven B Heymsfield Journal: Am J Hum Biol Date: 2014-11-08 Impact factor: 1.937
Authors: Roger A Fielding; John Gunstad; Deborah R Gustafson; Steven B Heymsfield; John G Kral; Lenore J Launer; Josef Penninger; David I W Phillips; Nikolaos Scarmeas Journal: Ann N Y Acad Sci Date: 2013-05-17 Impact factor: 5.691