Body composition phenotypes and bone health in young adults: A cluster analysis

Abstract

Lean mass is considered the best predictor of bone mass, as it is an excellent marker of bone mechanical stimulation, and changes in lean mass are highly correlated with bone outcomes in young adults. The aim of this study was to use cluster analysis to examine phenotype categories of body composition assessed by lean and fat mass in young adults and to assess how these body composition categories are associated with bone health outcomes. Cluster cross-sectional analyses of data from 719 young adults (526 women) aged 18-30 years from Cuenca and Toledo, Spain, were conducted. Lean mass index (lean mass (kg)/height (m)2), fat mass index (fat mass (kg)/height (m)2), bone mineral content (BMC) and areal bone mineral density (aBMD) were assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. A cluster analysis of lean mass and fat mass index z scores resulted in a classification of a five-category cluster solution that could be interpreted according to the body composition phenotypes of individuals as follows: high adiposity-high lean mass (n=98), average adiposity-high lean mass (n=113), high adiposity-average lean mass (n=213), low adiposity-average lean mass (n=142), and average adiposity-low lean mass (n=153). ANCOVA models showed that individuals in clusters with a higher lean mass had significantly better bone health (z score: 0.764, se: 0.090) than their peers in other cluster categories (z score:-0.529, se: 0.074) after controlling for sex, age, and cardiorespiratory fitness (p<0.05). Additionally, subjects belonging to the categories with a similar average lean mass index but with high or low-adiposity levels (z score: 0.289, se: 0.111; z score: 0.086, se: 0.076) showed better bone outcomes when the fat mass index was higher (p<0.05). This study confirms the validity of a body composition model using a cluster analysis to classify young adults according to their lean mass and fat mass indices. In addition, this model reinforces the main role of lean mass on bone health in this population and that in phenotypes with high-average lean mass, factors associated with fat mass may also have a positive effect on bone status.