Abstract
BackgroundIn epidemiological studies, measures of body fat generally are obtained through anthropometric indices such as the body mass index (BMI), waist (WC), and hip circumferences (HC). Such indices, however, can only provide estimates of a person’s true body fat content, overall or by adipose compartment, and may have limited accuracy, especially for the visceral adipose compartment (VAT).ObjectiveTo determine the extent to which different body adipose tissue compartments are adequately predicted by anthropometry, and to identify anthropometric measures alone, or in combination to predict overall adiposity and specific adipose tissue compartments, independently of age and body size (height).MethodsIn a sub-study of 1,192 participants of the German EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition) cohorts, whole-body MRI was performed to determine adipose and muscle tissue compartments. Additional anthropometric measurements of BMI, WC and HC were taken.ResultsAfter adjusting for age and height, BMI, WC and HC were better predictors of total body volume (TBV), total adipose tissue (TAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) than for VAT, coronary adipose tissue (CAT) and skeletal muscle tissue (SMT). In both sexes, BMI was the best predictor for TBV (men: r = 0.72 [0.68–0.76], women: r = 0.80 [0.77–0.83]) and SMT (men: r = 0.52 [0.45–0.57], women: r = 0.48 [0.41–0.54]). WC was the best predictor variable for TAT (r = 0.48 [0.41–0.54]), VAT (r = 0.44 [0.37–0.50]) and CAT (r = 0.34 [0.26–0.41]) (men), and for VAT (r = 0.42 [0.35–0.49]) and CAT (r = 0.29 [0.22–0.37]) (women). BMI was the best predictor for TAT (r = 0.49 [0.43–0.55]) (women). HC was the best predictor for SAT (men (r = 0.39 [0.32–0.45]) and women (r = 0.52 [0.46–0.58])).ConclusionsEspecially the volumes of internal body fat compartments are poorly predicted by anthropometry. A possible implication may be that associations of chronic disease risks with the sizes of internal body fat as measured by BMI, WC and HC may be strongly underestimated.
Highlights
Excess body fat is known to be one of the main risk factors for diabetes, as well as cardiovascular diseases [1,2] and several frequent types of cancer [3,4]
body mass index (BMI) was the best predictor for total body volume (TBV) and skeletal muscle tissue (SMT)
Especially the volumes of internal body fat compartments are poorly predicted by anthropometry
Summary
Excess body fat is known to be one of the main risk factors for diabetes, as well as cardiovascular diseases [1,2] and several frequent types of cancer [3,4]. A number of observations indicate that there can be a substantial part of ‘‘hidden’’ adiposity not properly accounted for by indices such as the BMI, suggesting a non-negligible prevalence of the metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease and cancer risk even for subjects whose BMI is still within the ‘normal’ range of 18–25 kg/m2 [11]. It is unclear whether standard anthropometric measurements allow an accurate estimation of the total amount of lean tissue. Can only provide estimates of a person’s true body fat content, overall or by adipose compartment, and may have limited accuracy, especially for the visceral adipose compartment (VAT)
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