The Utility of Body Composition Assessment in Nutrition and Clinical Practice: An Overview of Current Methodology.

Clifton J Holmes,Susan B Racette

doi:10.3390/nu13082493

Clifton J Holmes, Susan B Racette

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13082493

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Journal: Nutrients	Publication Date: Jul 22, 2021
Citations: 77	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Washington University in St. Louis

Abstract

Body composition is a key component for maintaining good general health and longevity. It can be influenced by a variety of factors, including genetics, environment, and lifestyle choices. The assessment of body composition is an essential tool for nutrition specialists to effectively evaluate nutritional status and monitor progression during dietary interventions. As humans age, there is a natural increase in fat mass coupled with a gradual decline in lean mass, specifically in bone and muscle mass. Individuals with a high body fat percentage are at a greater risk of cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, several types of cancer, and early mortality. Significant decreases in bone mineral density signify osteopenia and osteoporosis, while reductions in skeletal muscle mass increase the risk of developing sarcopenia. Moreover, undernutrition exacerbates the effects of many medical conditions and is important to address. Though weight tracking and calculation of BMI are used commonly by clinicians and dietitians, these measures do not provide insight on the relative contributions of fat mass and fat-free mass or the changes in these compartments that may reflect disease risk. Therefore, it is important that healthcare professionals have a critical understanding of body composition assessment and the strengths and limitations of the methods available.

Highlights

An individual’s nutritional status is defined as “the condition of the body, resulting from the balance of intake, absorption, and utilization of nutrients and the influence of particular physiological and pathological status” [1,2]
In the United States, more than 70% of adults are classified as overweight or obese based on body mass index (BMI) [13], with over $100 billion spent annually on medical costs related to obesity [14]
Important component needed for Hydrostatic Weighing (HW) assessment is residual lung

Summary

Introduction

An individual’s nutritional status is defined as “the condition of the body, resulting from the balance of intake, absorption, and utilization of nutrients and the influence of particular physiological and pathological status” [1,2]. The assessment of nutritional status has major relevance at both the individual level, as is the case for clinical practice, and among populations, as used in epidemiologic and public health research, to determine the presence of increased risk for nutrition-related conditions [2]. When determining a patient or client’s nutritional status, nutrition specialists (e.g., dieticians, expert clinicians) begin with a nutritional risk screening. Clinicians and dieticians most commonly use recent weight loss, current body mass, recent food intake, and medical history questionnaires during daily routine assessments [3,4].

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