Related Experiment Videos
Predicting percent body fat from circumference measurements
C L Shake1, C Schlichting, L W Mooney
1Biomedical Sciences Department, Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, CT 06349-5900.
Military Medicine
|January 1, 1993
Summary
The U.S. Navy's body fat measurement method (circumference equation) inaccurately classifies service members, leading to a significant false positive rate. This impacts personnel retention and career decisions.
Area of Science:
- Military health
- Body composition assessment
- Physiological standards
Background:
- U.S. Navy service members must meet body fat percentage (%BF) standards.
- Exceeding %BF standards can lead to separation from active duty.
- Current %BF predictions use circumference measurements and a prediction equation (CEQ).
Purpose of the Study:
- To validate the accuracy of the CEQ for predicting %BF in a population identified as overfat.
- To assess the impact of CEQ accuracy on personnel retention and career decisions.
- To evaluate the sensitivity, specificity, and predictive value of the CEQ.
Main Methods:
- Compared %BF values determined by hydrostatic weighing (HW) and CEQ.
- Used a validation group of men (≥22%BF) and women (≥30%BF).
- Analyzed data using a medical diagnostic model and compared to original NHRC population data.
Main Results:
- Correlation coefficients for the validation group were lower than the original NHRC group.
- Lower accuracy is attributed to restricted data range and prediction error at extreme values.
- The CEQ produced a 6.8% to 18% false positive rate for excess body fat.
Conclusions:
- Caution is advised when using the CEQ for individual career decisions.
- The current Navy %BF prediction method has significant limitations.
- Inaccurate body fat assessments may negatively affect service members' careers.