Body Fat Measurement

An alternative way to determine obesity is to assess percent body fat. Doctors and scientists generally agree that men with more than 25% body fat and women with more than 30% body fat are obese.

However, it is difficult to measure body fat precisely. The most accepted method has been to weigh a person underwater, but underwater weighing is a procedure limited to laboratories with special equipment. Two simpler methods for measuring body fat are the skin fold test, in which a pinch of skin is precisely measured to determine the thickness of the subcutaneous fat layer; or bioelectrical impedance analysis, usually only carried out at specialist clinics.

I just bought the Taylor Handheld Body Fat Analyzer, nice little portable device that uses Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) to determine your body fat and overall health and fitness. BIA is one of the most accurate methods of measuring body fat and works by sending a harmless electrical signal through the fat and muscle in your body. And, for less than $13 it is a cool gadget to carry along and test your friend’s fat analysis too :)