Body composition by underwater weighing and bioelectrical impedance methods in college students

Resumen

The objective of this study was to determine and to compare % fat, LBM and FM of male and female college students measured by hydrostatic weighing and bioelectrical impedance assessment (BIA). To this end, 115 subjects (57 male and 58 female), aged 18 to 30, were assessed by BIA and hydrostatic weighing, which was adopted as the gold standard. The t test for dependent samples revealed that there was a statistically signifi cant difference (p < 0,001) between mean body composition results from the two methods, despite the fact that Pearson’s correlation coeffi cients for %F, FM and LBM were signifi cant (p < 0,001). We conclude that, when interpreting the results of BIA used as a method for estimating body composition, extreme caution is necessary.