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Cited by 41Body Composition Measurement TechniquesObesity, Physical Activity, DietDiabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins

Optimal scaling of weight and waist circumference to height for maximal association with DXA-measured total body fat mass by sex, age and race/ethnicity

Heo, M, Kabat, G C, Gallagher, D, Heymsfield, S B, Rohan, T E·2013·International Journal of Obesity
DOI 10.1038/ijo.2012.201
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Abstract

Background Body mass index (BMI; weight (Wt)/height (Ht) (in kg m(-2)) and waist circumference (WC) are widely used as proxy anthropometric measures for total adiposity. Little is known about what scaling power of 'x' in both Wt(kg)/Ht(m)(x) and WC(m)/Ht(m)(x) is maximally associated with measured total body fat mass (TBFM). Establishing values for x would provide the information needed to create optimum anthropometric surrogate measures of adiposity.Objective To estimate the value of 'x' that renders Wt/Ht(x) and WC/Ht(x) maximally associated with DXA-measured TBFM.Subjects Participants of the NHANES 1999-2004 surveys, stratified by sex (men, women), race/ethnicity (non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks, Mexican-Americans), and age(18-29, 30-49, 50-84 years).Methods We apply a grid search by increasing x from 0.0-3.0 by increments of 0.1 to the simple regression models, TBFM=b0+b1*(Wt/Ht(x)) and TBFM=b0+b1*(WC/Ht(x)) to obtain an estimate of x that results in the greatest R(2), taking into account complex survey design features and multiply imputed data.Results R(2)'s for BMI are 0.86 for men (N=6544) and 0.92 for women (N=6362). The optimal powers x for weight are 1.0 (R(2)=0.90) for men and 0.8 (R(2)=0.96) for women. The optimal power x for WC is 0, that is, no scaling of WC to height, for men (R(2)=0.90) or women (R(2)=0.82). The optimal powers for weight across nine combinations of race/ethnicity and age groups for each sex vary slightly (x=0.8-1.3) whereas the optimal scaling powers for WC are all 0 for both sexes except for non-Hispanic black men aged 18-29y (x=0.1). Although the weight-for-height indices with optimal powers are not independent of height, they yield more accurate TBFM estimates than BMI.Conclusion In reference to TBFM, Wt/Ht and Wt/Ht(0.8) are the optimal weight-for-height indices for men and women, respectively, whereas WC alone, without Ht adjustment, is the optimal WC-for-height index for both sexes. Thus, BMI, an index independent of height, may be less useful when predicting TBFM.

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Authors
Heo, M., Kabat, G. C., Gallagher, D., Heymsfield, S. B., & Rohan, T. E.
Affiliations
  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine (US)
  • St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center (US)
  • Pennington Biomedical Research Center (US)
Corresponding author
Heo, M
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Obesity
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2012-12-04
Volume
37
Issue
8
Pages
1154-1160
ISSN
  • 0307-0565 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-5497
DOI
10.1038/ijo.2012.201
OpenAlex
W2005553952
Cited by
41
References
45
Citations by year
2025: 2 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 2
FWCI
2.57
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • International Journal of Obesity (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (P30DK026687)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins
Keywords
total body fat mass, body mass index, waist circumference, adiposity, anthropometric measures, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, sex differences, racial and ethnic differences, age differences, NHANES, obesity assessment, body composition, Mexican Americans, non-Hispanic blacks, non-Hispanic whites, children and adolescents, adults, older adults
MeSH terms
Adipose Tissue, Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Black or African American, Body Height, Body Weight, Female, Hispanic or Latino, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Nutrition Surveys, Obesity, Predictive Value of Tests, Risk Factors, United States, Reproducibility of Results, Absorptiometry, Photon, Body Mass Index, White People, Abdominal Fat, Waist Circumference

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