The influence of stratum corneum hydration on body fat determination by bioelectrical impedance analysis

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is used for the estimation of the amount of body fat. We evaluated the influence of the stratum corneum hydration at the contact areas used for BIA on the body fat estimation.

Stratum corneum hydration was measured at the sole of the right foot and the palm of the right hand before and after contact with the Tanita Body Composition Analyzer TBF 410(®) and the Omron Body Fat Analyzer(®) , (n=128 females and 126 males), respectively. Changes in stratum corneum hydration during the contact time were calculated (ΔHYD). As a gold standard for body fat estimation, the underwater weighing method (UWW) was used and the deviation of this standard was calculated for the Tanita (DT) and the Omron (DO) measurement.

During contact with the Tanita, stratum corneum hydration increased significantly at the foot. Neither stratum corneum hydration measured at the respective contact sites before BIA nor ΔHYD at the respective skin sites was related to DT or with DO.

The BIA measuring procedure using the Tanita instrument leads to an occlusive effect at the contact site. BIA for the determination of body composition is not influenced by stratum corneum hydration.