Weight-height indices and percent body fat among U.S. Navy divers
Dembert, M.L.; Jekel, J.F.; Mooney, L.W.
Aviation Space and Environmental Medicine 55(5): 391-395
1984
ISSN/ISBN: 0095-6562 PMID: 6732694 Document Number: 241795
Weight, height and other anthropometric values were measured in 194 US Navy divers 20 to 42 years old. Percentage body fat was computed for each man using an established prediction equation derived from a group of US Marine Corps personnel whose age, height and weight characteristics were comparable with those of the divers. Among the divers, weight, weight-height indices and percentage body fat increased across age bands. The body mass index (W/Hsuperscript 2) was the best predictor of adiposity, as it had the highest correlation with percentage body fat and the lowest correlation with height. Regression analysis measured that relation. The relative obesity of the divers (18.2% body fat) and the implications for using the body mass index as a measure of adiposity in medical examinations are discussed.