ESTIMATION OF BODY FAT PERCENTAGE IN ADULT POPULATION IN NEPAL AND ASSESS ITS CORRELATION WITH BODY MASS INDEX

Abstract

Background: Body mass index (BMI) remains widely used parameter to assess obesity. However, it does not account for the fat and lean body mass. Amidst different methods of estimation of body fat, skinfold measurement remains the most feasible. This study was conducted to explore the correlation between BMI and body fat percentage (BF %) measured through skin-fold measurements.

Methods: This cross-section study includes 207 healthy subjects (100 male and 107 female) aged 17-25 years. Anthropometric variables, waist and hip circumference were measured. Skinfold was measured using a caliper at triceps, biceps, iliac crest, and subscapular areas. BMI was derived from height and weight. Body density was calculated using the Durnin and Womersley formula and BF% was estimated by Siri equation. Group means for BMI and body fat percentage was calculated, the association between BF % and BMI, waist-hip ratio (WHR) and waist circumference (WC) was established using a Pearson Correlation analysis and Pearson correlation coefficient was reported.

Results: The mean BMI and BF% was 21.77 ± 2.986 kg/m2 and 23.25 ± 6.693 respectively. Overall correlation between BMI and BF% was 0.325. The correlation of BF% with BMI was (0.811, 0.790) and with waist circumference was (0.668, 0.558) in male and female respectively. Similarly, correlation between BF% and WHR was 0.30 in male and 0.266 in female. The results were statistically significant at p<0.01.

Conclusions: There is a strong correlation between BF% and BMI. This study also showed that WC better correlates with BF% as compared to WHR in both sexes.