The importance of measuring body composition in older adults lies in the need of establishing energy stores and protein mass determining skeletal mineral status hydration status and energy expenditure heymsfield et al 1989 among other aspects. The amount of body fat and the amount of body cell mass are important parameters when judging the net effect of energy in take and expenditure.
Body Composition Nutritional Assessment
Measurement of body composition in elderly. Crossref google scholar virgili f damicis a. Obesity and high waist circumference may be important determinants of. Physical fitness body composition and frailty in elderly peopleexercise program effecsts. Improving body composition has been demonstrated in a variety of populations including healthy adults elderly and those with chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes15161819 even frail adults in their 90s respond robustly to intense resis tance training programs with significant increases in strength muscle size and. American journal of clinical nutrition 53 11171123. Exernet elder 30 exernetelder the safety and scientific validity of this study is the responsibility of the study sponsor and investigators.
A whole body scan was used to determine total body fat mass. Thus examination of body composition adds information to an overall picture of nutrition of the elderly. Body composition can be assessed in a number of different ways with methods ranging in technicality cost and accuracy. Considered as a metabolic and functional component the body composition bc undergoes significant changes in the elderly1 which are mainly expressed by the negative variation in fat free mass ffm23 changes in lean body mass bone mass and fat mass in the elderly have a great impact on health status1 functional capacity and quality of life2. Four equations were developed and validated for the estimation of elderly male body composition variables one each for body density r 2 66 s e e 01 where see is the standard error of estimate percentage of fat r 2 66 s e e 443. Unclear mainly due to a lack of studies and a lack of accurate measurement of body composition by computed tomography or mri.
The only fully accurate measurement of body composition is cadaver whole body dissection analysis previously undertaken as part of the brussels cadaver analysis study. Measurement of body fat in elderly subjects by dual energy x ray absorptiometry bio electrical impedance and anthropometry. Body mass index was calculated using body weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. Such overall knowledge also requires data on actual dietary habits of elderly popula. Body composition was measured using dexa on a hologic scanner hologic bedford ma. Weight loss and exercise training intervention studies can be of benefit to frail older adults.
Percent body fat was calculated by dividing total body fat by the sum of bone lean and fat mass.