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Body composition changes during Tanner stage 5
M Horlick1, J Thornton, J Wang
1Body Composition Unit, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, New York 10025, USA. mnh1@columbia.edu
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
|June 24, 2000
Summary
Body composition changes with age during late puberty (Tanner stage 5). Lean body mass increases more in males, suggesting age impacts maturity definitions, particularly for males.
Area of Science:
- Human Physiology
- Adolescent Development
- Body Composition Analysis
Background:
- Maturity assessment in adolescents typically relies on Tanner stage 5 (T5), final height, and epiphyseal fusion.
- The influence of age on body composition during T5 requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test if age-related body composition changes are identifiable during Tanner stage 5 (T5) of puberty.
- To explore the independent effects of age and ethnicity on body composition during T5.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study of 148 adolescents (T5) across Asian, Black, Hispanic, and White ethnicities.
- Measurements included height, weight, total body potassium (40K), total body water (D2O), bone mineral, fat-free mass, and fat mass (DXA).
Main Results:
- Relative increases in lean body components with age were greater than height and weight increases, particularly in males.
- Age significantly determined all body components in males, but only bone mineral in females.
- The effect of age on body composition was independent of ethnicity.
Conclusions:
- Age has an independent effect on body composition during T5, with pronounced effects in males.
- Peak lean body component levels may warrant inclusion in maturity definitions for clinical and metabolic assessments.