BF-555/556 Scale plus Body Fat Monitor

PRINCIPLES OF ESTIMATING BODY FAT %

Tanita Scale plus Body Fat Monitors allow you to measure your body fat percentage at home as easily as you measure your weight.

What is Body Fat Percentage?

Body fat percentage is the percentage of fat in your body. Until now, your absolute weight has determined whether or not you were considered overweight or obese. In recent years, the definition of obesity has been refined to mean the presence of excess body fat. Obesity has been linked to conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other disabling conditions.

Body Fat Ranges for Standard Adults1, 2

Underfat

Healthy

Overfat

Obese

Female 20–39

Age 40–59

60–79

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Male 20–39

Age 40–59

60–79

Underfat

Healthy

Overfat

Obese

1Based on NIH/WHO BMI Guidelines.

2As reported by Gallagher, et al, at NY Obesity Research Center.

To determine the percentage of body fat that is appropriate for your body, consult your physician.

Tanita’s patented “foot-pad” design sends a safe, low-level electrical signal through the body to determine its composition.

The BIA Method

Tanita Scale plus Body Fat Monitors use the BIA (Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis) technique. In this method, a safe low-level electrical signal is passed through the body. It is difficult for the signal to flow through fat in the human body, but easy to flow through moisture in the muscle and other body tissues. The difficulty with which a signal flows through a substance is called impedance. So the amount of fat in the body can be accurately estimated by measuring the impedance. The signal used is very low, making it safe and imperceptible.

The illustration on the left shows how the signal travels through the body.

Body Fat Percentage Fluctuations in a Day

Hydration levels in the body may affect body fat readings. Readings are usually highest in the early waking hours, since the body tends to be dehydrated after a long night’s sleep. For the most accurate reading, a person should take a body fat percentage reading at a consistent time of day under consistent conditions.

Besides this basic cycle of fluctuations in the daily body fat readings, variations may be caused by hydration changes in the body due to eating, drinking, menstruation, illness, exercising, and bathing. Daily body fat readings are unique to each person, and depend upon one’s lifestyle, job and activities.

Advantages of Tanita Scale plus Body Fat Monitors

Previously, body fat percentage was determined by measuring the thickness of subcutaneous fat by pinching it with calipers, or by laying a person on a scanning bed and passing a current from hand to foot. However, these methods had problems—professional skills are required, the procedures take time and are often invasive, and measurement values vary. Currently, the gold standard methods of fat percentage measurement are the underwater weighing method and DEXA (dual energy x-ray absorptiometry).

Tanita’s BIA method uses equations derived from large, multi-ethnic population studies to predict body composition. Readings taken with Tanita Scale plus Body Fat Monitors correlate highly with both DEXA (Tanita’s reference model) and Hydrodensitometry.

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