Are there ethnic differences in the association between body weight and resistance, measured by bioelectrical impedance?
Open accessAbstract
Objective To describe ethnic differences in the relationship between body size and body composition. Knowledge about such differences is important when studying obesity-related complications, such as hypertension and non-insulin dependent diabetes, because it may not be possible to generalize results from one study population to other populations.Design Cross-sectional study.Subjects Four groups of different ethnic identity (2987 Caucasians (Danes), 243 predominantly Melanesian (Torres Strait Islanders from northern Australia), 206 Australian Aborigines and 146 Polynesians (New Zealand Samoans), aged 30-70 y, were studied.Measurements We examined associations between body weight and bioelectrical impedance, as a measure of body composition.Results Except for Australian Aborigines, associations (slopes) between body weight and resistance were generally constant in the different ethnic groups, once height and age differences had been considered, indicating that this relationship may involve a certain universality, that is independent of the population specificity for impedance measurement. Systematic differences in instrument readings or electrodes did not seem to be responsible for the differences found.Conclusion With the exception of Australian Aborigines, there may be a constant relation between body size and body composition (total body water or fat free mass) of different ethnic groups, that depends on gender and age category only.
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Differences in body properties related to obesity and ethnicity may prevent a single BIA equation from being best for all.
“mounting evidence suggests that the differences in the properties of the body, such as those related to obesity (3) and ethnicity (6,9,33), may prevent this from becoming a reality.”
From Comparison of Body Composition Methods in Obese African‐American Women (2006) · cites this paper as [33]
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- Authors
- Heitmann, B., Swinburn, B., Carmichael, H., Rowley, K., Plank, L., McDermott, R., Leonard, D., & O’Dea, K.
- Affiliations
- University of Auckland (NZ)
- Deakin University (AU)
- Queensland Health (AU)
- Venue
- International Journal of Obesity
- Published
- 1997-12
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 1085-1092
- ISSN
- 0307-0565 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5497
- OpenAlex
- W2328791085
- Cited by
- 24
- References
- 23
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 2
- FWCI
- 0.41
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- figshare.com
- Licence
- Locations
- International Journal of Obesity (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Deakin Research Online (Deakin University) (submittedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Body Composition Measurement Techniques
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Indigenous Health and Education
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins
- Keywords
- ethnic differences, body composition, bioimpedance, body weight, resistance, total body water, fat-free mass, obesity, Torres Strait Islanders, Aboriginal Australians, Samoan, population specificity, obesity complications
- MeSH terms
- Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, Adult, Aged, Aging, Analysis of Variance, Body Composition, Body Height, Body Weight, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Regression Analysis, Sex Characteristics, Body Mass Index, Electric Impedance, Black People, White People
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