Body fat percentage is a more reliable indicator of an individual’s general health than body mass index, according to a new study.
Researchers at the School of Public Health at Tel Aviv University Faculty of Medicine analyzed the anthropometric data of 3,001 Israeli women and men, 20 to 95 years old, accumulated over several years, along with cardiometabolic blood markers, body mass index (BMI) scores, and dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), which measure body composition, including fat content.
The researchers recommend that a body fat percentage index—meaning assessing excess fat—should be the gold standard of measuring obesity, and that clinics in Israel and worldwide should be equipped with suitable devices to measure this….