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Novel Anthropometric Techniques for Health and Nutrition Assessment

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A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 July 2025 | Viewed by 4277

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Masaharu Kagawa

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Guest Editor

Institute of Nutrition Sciences, Kagawa Nutrition University, 3-9-21 Chiyoda, Sakado 350-0288, Saitama, Japan
Interests: anthropometry; body composition assessments; body image; nutrition; public health; sports science
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Alice May Bullas

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Guest Editor

Sports Engineering Research Group, Sport and Physical Activity Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S9 3TY, UK
Interests: anthropometry; sport; physical activity

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Anthropometry is a non-invasive, simple, convenient and cost-effective method to assess the health and nutritional status of individuals and populations. To date, a number of anthropometric indices, including body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and waist circumference, have been proposed as useful tools to screen health and nutritional status. Today, with the advancement of technologies to assess body composition and fat distribution patterns, physical performance, metabolic biomarkers, and also genetic information, the capabilities and usefulness of anthropometry and the indices that conveniently reflect these pieces of information have been highlighted.

In this Special Issue of Applied Sciences, we will consider studies that investigate the potential of anthropometry in assessments of both physiological and psychological health and nutritional status. The topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

Validity of anthropometric indices in health and nutritional screenings;
Proposal of novel anthropometric indices and techniques;
Application of anthropometry for physical performance assessment;
Association of anthropometry and psychological health.

Dr. Masaharu Kagawa
Dr. Alice May Bullas
Guest Editors

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Keywords

anthropometry
anthropometric indices
skinfolds
somatotype
3D scanning
body composition
malnutrition
performance
metabolic syndrome
chronic diseases
body image
psychological disorders
nutritional assessment
pregnancy
infants
adolescents
elderly
growth and development

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Research

17 pages, 278 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparative Analysis of Body Composition Results Obtained by Air Displacement Plethysmography (ADP) and Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) in Adults

by Radosław Smolik, Martyna Gaweł, Dominika Kliszczyk, Natalia Sasin, Kacper Szewczyk and Magdalena Górnicka

Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(7), 3480; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15073480 - 22 Mar 2025

Viewed by 477

Abstract

Body composition assessment provides clinical and scientific information about health, including the metabolic risks associated with low or high body fat. The aim of the study was to (i) compare the agreement of the results of the body fat percentage from the air displacement plethysmography (ADP)—BOD POD and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) method—InBody 770; (ii) compare the agreement of the classification of central obesity risk in young adult, healthy females and males using data from manual measurement of waist circumference (WC) and BIA analysis. The Bland–Altman plots were used to determine the clinical agreement between BIA, ADP, and various anthropometric measurements (ADP and anthropometry were utilized as reference techniques to compare variables estimated from BIA). Finally, 203 participants enrolled in this study. We found low agreement (Bland–Altman index: 6.4%) in body fat content (%BF) and Fat Mass Index between results from ADP and BIA methods. The InBody 770 analyzer revealed an underestimation in %BF for the total group and for males. The low agreement was also observed when comparing WC measured manually versus estimated by BIA, as well as with waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). Moreover, demonstrated systematic bias and/or proportionate bias between BIA and ADP indicate that these devices cannot be used interchangeably. WC should be measured manually, especially in females. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Anthropometric Techniques for Health and Nutrition Assessment)

16 pages, 283 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Weight-Adjusted Waist Index as a New Useful Tool for Assessing Body Composition and Risk of Metabolic Disorders in Adult Women

by Martina Gažarová, Laura Hačková, Zoia Sharlovych, Petra Lenártová, Mária Kijovská, Jana Pastrnáková and Tetiana Kutiuhova

Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(3), 1335; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15031335 - 27 Jan 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 959

Abstract

(1) Background: Commonly used anthropometric indices have limitations that discriminate their relevance. The subject of this research was to evaluate the health risks associated with body composition using the new weight-adjusted waist index (WWI). (2) Materials and Methods: The research group consisted of two hundred and thirty-nine Caucasian women. Body composition was analyzed by the MF-BIA method using InBody 970. The WWI was calculated as waist circumference divided by the square root of weight. Biochemical parameters (lipid profile, glucose, hs-CRP and uric acid) were analyzed using a Biolis 24i Premium biochemical analyser. One-factor variance analysis, a post-hoc test, Pearson correlation analysis and WWI quartiles were used for the statistical evaluation. (3) Results: The results showed significant differences between WWI quartiles. Compared to the lowest quartile, participants in the highest quartile groups had the highest values of body weight (58.49 vs. 87.17 kg; p < 0.001), waist circumference (WC) (76.47 vs. 109.45 cm; p < 0.001), body mass index (BMI) (20.65 vs. 32.06 kg/m²; p < 0.001), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) (0.84 vs. 1.03; p < 0.001), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) (0.46 vs. 0.66; p < 0.001), fat-free mass (FFM) (44.97 vs. 49.12 kg; p < 0.001), fat mass (FM) (13.52 vs. 38.05 kg; p < 0.001) and visceral fat area (VFA) (56.94 vs. 150.62 cm²; p < 0.001), confirming a higher risk of obesity. The women in the highest quartile had significantly higher values of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), glucose (GLU), uric acid (UA), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP). The correlations showed a strong positive relationship of the WWI with WC (r = 0.924), VFA (r = 0.907) and FM (r = 0.901) and a strong negative relationship with %FFM (r = −0.9) and %SMM (skeletal muscle mass) (r = −0.887). The correlation analysis also confirmed a strong positive association with WHR (r = 0.964), WHtR (r = 0.944), FMI (r = 0.902) and BMI (r = 0.863). (4) Conclusions: Our results confirmed that the WWI is a useful tool for assessing fat and muscle components, as well as for assessing health risks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Anthropometric Techniques for Health and Nutrition Assessment)

17 pages, 768 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effectiveness of Physical Activity Intervention at School on BMI and Body Composition in Overweight Children: A Pilot Study

by Wojciech Kolanowski and Katarzyna Ługowska

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(17), 7705; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177705 - 31 Aug 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1924

Abstract

(1) Background: Overweight children usually have lower levels of physical activity (PA) than their normal-weight peers. Low PA predisposes to an increase in body fat mass. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of school-based PA intervention on the anthropometric indicators and body composition of overweight and obese children during a two-year observation period, from the age of 10 to 12. (2) Materials and methods: The research included 148 children with overweight or obesity who were born in 2007. There were two groups of children with standard and elevated PA at school (SPA and EPA; 4 and 10 h of physical education lessons a week, respectively). Anthropometric and body composition measurements were carried out. Body mass index (BMI), fat mass (FM), fat-free mass (FFM), skeletal muscle mass (SMM), and total body water (TBW) were estimated. In total, five measurements were conducted at intervals of 5–6 months. (3) Results: In EPA group, the percentage of obese children decreased from 46% to 35.25%, and in SPA group, this percentage increased from 42.75% to 46%. Only 3.33% of children in the standard PA group (one child) and 17.2% in the elevated PA group (six children) changed their BMI and FM categories from overweight to normal body mass. In EPA children, FM decreased from 28.65% to 26.41%, and in SPA children, it increased from 30.31% to 31.75%. The highest increase in FFM was in EPA boys, while SPA boys recorded the highest decrease. In SPA children, SMM increased by 0.43% from 38.85% to 39.28%, and in EPA children, it increased by 2.51% from 40.27% to 42.78%. In EPA children, TBW slightly increased from 53.26% to 53.59%, and in SPA children, it decreased from 50.70% to 49.93%. (4) Conclusions: Elevated PA at school has a positive effect on the BMI and body composition of children who are overweight or obese. Increasing the mandatory number of physical education lessons in school curricula is an efficient strategy for reducing obesity in school-aged children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Anthropometric Techniques for Health and Nutrition Assessment)

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