Diets for weight loss. Updated August 22, Healthy percentage body fat ranges: guidelines based on body fat index. Am J Clin Nutr. Stay away from fad diets. Eat Right—Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website. Updated December Exceptional Nurses Winchester Hospital was the first community hospital in the state to achieve Magnet designation, recognition for nursing excellence.
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Home Health Library. Measuring Your Body Fat There are several ways you can find out your percentage of body fat. Other ways of measuring body fat include: Underwater weighing—Under water, lean tissue sinks and fat floats. Your underwater weight can be used to estimate the amount of fat mass you carry.
Underwater weighing is highly accurate, but it can be expensive and time consuming, and it requires special equipment. The Bod Pod—This machine works by measuring the amount of air your body displaces. Like underwater weighing, the Bod Pod is highly accurate, but it can be expensive and requires special equipment. The Bod Pod is, however, slightly more convenient than underwater weighing, since it does not require underwater submersion. The Bod Pod also takes less time.
The advantages of this scan are that it is quick and it takes bone into consideration when comparing body fat to muscle. Bioelectrical impedance—This method works by measuring the speed of an electrical current as it travels through your body. It is one of the least expensive methods of measuring body fat. It is less subject to human error than calipers, but its accuracy depends on a number of factors, including hydration, the fullness of the stomach, and how recently a person has exercised.
If you are looking for a way to keep track of your body fat percentage at home, you can buy a bioelectrical impedance scale. Keep in mind though, that these scales are not always accurate and are probably better for monitoring changes in your body fat than giving you precise numbers. Healthy Body Fat Percentages So, what should your body fat percentage be? Reducing Your Body Fat When it comes to losing weight, the key is to eat fewer calories than you expend. Michael Woods, MD Cancer Care.
Emergency Services. Cesarean Birth. Imaging Services. High Blood Pressure. Laboratory Services. But the formula can't assess how or where your body stores its excess fat — a distinction that is crucial for cardiovascular health. Some people are genetically programmed to have a lot of fat tissue under the skin, which is deployed to store extra food energy during times of scarcity. But other people have very few of these designated fat cells, explains Dr.
In individuals who lack an adequate quota of available fat storage cells or people whose fat tissue is already filled to capacity , fat particles travel in the bloodstream and congregate in the liver, muscles, and other organs, which normally have no fat. This also leads to the accumulation of visceral or "belly" fat — a pattern of fat distribution that is particularly hazardous to your health see "Who is prone to visceral fat?
Visceral fat is associated with insulin resistance and other metabolic irregularities. The tendency to accumulate visceral fat is governed by genetic, ethnic, and gender differences.
For example, people who inherit two copies one from each parent of a mutation in a gene involved in fat metabolism are more likely to have higher amounts of visceral fat than people with just one copy.
Those without any copies of the gene mutation are less likely to develop heart disease — even if they become obese. Natives of India and South Asia have a higher-than-average propensity for abdominal obesity. And white men and black women tend to accumulate more visceral fat than black men and white women. With age, people tend to lose muscle tissue, especially the type of specialized muscle fibers that produce quick bursts of speed and power.
Fat frequently accumulates within the remaining muscle tissue, causing your body fat percentage to increase even when your weight remains constant. This scenario is closely linked to bodywide inflammation and diabetes risk. It may also explain why your BMI measurement doesn't provide a true reflection of your health risks. Evidence suggests that waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio are better indicators of metabolic health than BMI.
Even among people with the same BMI, those who have a large waist defined as more than 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women have a significantly higher risk. In addition, people who tend to carry their weight in their hips and thighs a "pear" shape have lower waist-to-hip ratios and are less prone to heart disease than people with abdominal obesity an "apple" shape ; see "Measuring your midsection.
To measure your waist accurately, exhale and wrap a measuring tape around your bare abdomen just above your navel belly button. The American Council on Exercises provides the following ranges for body fat percentage for adults. The two most common methods skin fold measurement and bioelectrical impedance analysis are often used in homes and gyms, but the accuracy of each varies and the error rates can be as high as eight percent.
Other more accurate methods, such as X-ray analysis and water displacement, are much more complicated and not readily available. If you work out regularly, body fat percentage should be calculated periodically to provide a more accurate picture of your health and fitness.
Your doctor can help determine if your weight is causing health problems or putting you at risk for certain diseases. Contact Goshen Physicians to set up an appointment with a primary care provider.
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