HOW DOES A BODY FAT MEASURING DEVICE WORKS AND ITS ACCURACY?

New technologies make anything possible

People only have to look around themselves to see how their environment is changed by emerging technologies. Better and more advanced technologies are introduced almost daily. This is good news for most industries but apparently, it is still not an easy task to get an accurate body fat measurement from some of the analyzers of body fat available today. Nevertheless, the health industry is a $billion a year enterprise. There will always be someone looking for a cut of the cake. This is why a wide variety of body fat analyzers is now available to the general public. These devices are also called impedance meters. There are a wide variety of factors which can affect the readings obtained from body fat analyzers. The hydration levels of a person testing themselves are one factor as well as the quality of the specific body fat measuring device. According to experts dealing with body fat and related matters those who are concerned about their levels of body fat, it is best to approach their physicians who will mostly have access to sophisticated body fat measuring techniques.

Ways to measure body fat

Air Displacement Plethysmography Chamber

One popular technique is underwater weighing. This is a process which is also known in medical circles as hydrodensitometry. During this process, a patient will be required to sit in a special chair which is submerged underwater. The process works as follows, the weight of your body under water also referred to as your body density will then be used by your doctor to calculate the amount of fat which is contained in your body.

Another popular process is known as dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. During this process, the patient will be subject to a sophisticated x-ray exam that will provide your doctor with detailed information that will reveal the exact ratio of muscle, bones and fat present in the various parts of your body.

Doctors also frequently use a process known as air displacement plethysmography. This is a sophisticated technology where a patient is enclosed in a chamber which is egg-shaped and computerized. With this sophisticated device, it is possible to accurately measure the volume and the weight of a person and in this way, it determines your body density. Those results are then used to accurately calculate the level of body fat present in your body.

Maintaining a healthy balance

It is completely understandable that body weight is an important factor for many people. When people are working hard to shed extra weight it can be frustrating when the change takes place so slowly. Furthermore, it is a natural desire on the part of individuals to obtain accurate and objective feedback on your individual weight reduction process. There are however many health professionals who are cautioning people that body weight should never be their primary focus. Extensive research over many years has proven that there are many overweight people which is in excellent health. On the other hand, there are many slim people who have what people will consider as the perfect weight but who are not healthy at all. Nevertheless, being able to measure your body fat is an interesting way to determine what are the body components making up all of your weight. That is why body fat measuring processes will be able to tell you how much of your total body weight is made up of fat. The argument is that when a person has a low body fat percentage than the obvious conclusion is that their body contains a high percentage of lean muscle mass which is considered to be the healthier option.

A handheld body fat measuring device

Many people are today making use of handheld devices to measure body fat and many of these devices rely on bioelectrical impedance. This technology estimates your body fat by emitting a painless electrical signal which will pass through a person’s body. The theory is that it takes different amounts of time for that signal to pass through bone, fat, muscle or water. And this is why the exact amount of time which the signal requires to pass through your body can then be used to provide a remarkably accurate measurement of body fat. Apparently, such a bioelectrical impedance signal will pass quickly and easily for through water. However, when it comes to muscle and bone its progress is somewhat slower while the signal will struggle even more when passing through that. The conclusion should be obvious in a body with more muscle and less fat the signal pass significantly quicker through your body.

Final considerations

It should be remembered that in the above test there are several other equations that should be considered. There are things such as high, gender, weight and also the activity level of the individual all of which is important factors which can have an influence on the composition of a person’s body. There are now even scales available which have this technology integrated and there is also a whole range of handheld devices that can measure various body parts. According to healthcare professionals a healthy range as far as body fat is concerned is between 16 and 25% in males and between 19 and 32% in females.