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Relationships between body roundness with body fat and visceral adipose tissue emerging from a new geometrical model
Author(s) -
Thomas Diana Maria,
Bredlau Carl,
BosyWestphal Anja,
Müller Manfred,
Shen Wei,
Gallagher Dympna,
Maeda Yuna,
McDougall Andrew,
Peterson Courtney,
Ravussin Eric,
Heymsfield Steven B.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.360.2
Subject(s) - roundness (object) , body shape , waist , body mass index , circumference , body adiposity index , body shape index , anthropometry , classification of obesity , adipose tissue , body volume index , population , medicine , visceral fat , mathematics , anatomy , obesity , geometry , fat mass , pathology , insulin resistance , environmental health
Objective To develop a new geometrically meaningful index that combines height, waist circumference (WC), and hip circumference (HC) and relate this index to total and visceral body fat. Design and Methods Subject data were pooled from three databases that contained demographic, anthropometric, dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA) measured fat mass, and magnetic resonance imaging measured visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume. Two elliptical models of the human body were developed. Body roundness was calculated from the model using eccentricity. Results A body roundness index (BRI) was derived to quantify the roundness of an individual's body shape in a height‐independent manner. Body roundness slightly improved predictions of % body fat and % VAT compared to the traditional metrics of body mass index (BMI), WC, or HC. On this basis, ranges of healthy body roundness were determined based on previously established age‐dependent population ranges of % body fat. Conclusions Body roundness index, a new shape measure, is a predictor of % body fat and % VAT and can be applied as a visual tool for health status evaluations.