Agreement of measures between measured body adiposity and calculated indices of fatness in sedentary and active male and female students

Abstract

Study aim: Our study was undertaken to analyze agreement between measured body fat and different indices of fatness in students of both sexes and with different physical activity.

Materials and methods: A total of 330 students not engaged in regular physical activity (150 males and 180 females) and 356 students (180 males and 176 females) engaged in regular physical activity due to their study program (5–7 h/week) were recruited. In all participants body adiposity was measured from skinfold thickness. In addition, calculated indices of fatness based on waist (WC) and hip circumference (HC), such as abdominal volume index (AVI), body adiposity index (BAI) and relative fat mass (RFM) were calculated.

Results: The analysis of Bland-Altman plots revealed that agreement between measured and calculated body fat was found for RFM and BAI in sedentary and active men and for BAI in sedentary women, but not for measured body fat and RFM in sedentary women and for RFM and BAI in active women.

Discussion: Our study showed that in young adult Poles of both sexes and with different physical activity, the calculated obesity rates should be used with caution, especially in women, as an indicator of total body fat.