Overweight could be detected with the IAC

Scientists of theKeck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , in the United States, they developed a new way to detect if a person has overweight , without the need to use a scale.

It is called Body Adiposity Index (IAC), and is based on the height of the person and the size of the hip. Specifically, the measurement is obtained by dividing the circumference of the hip by the weight raised to 1.5 power. The result obtained must be subtracted 18.

The article published in the most recent issue of the journal Obesity, indicates that the new measure is much more accurate than the "classic" Body Mass Index (IMC), used during the last two centuries and calculated by dividing the weight in kilograms by the height in meters.

In accordance with Richard Bergerman , author of the study, the IMC It is not a perfect measure. For example, men with a IMC of 30 may have a fat level of 25%, while in women, the percentage of fat is more likely to be 35%:

"There are people with the IMC greater than 25 (theoretically, "overweight ") That have a lot muscle mass and nothing of grease . With the IMC You get a "relative number", but with the IAC, you have the correct percentage of fat, "Bergerman said.

Bergerman and his team obtained the new index by studying 1,733 Mexican-American subjects and 223 African-American subjects. They confirmed the accuracy of the scale, by using a device called: edual energy X-ray absorption scanner, that allows to determine the percentage of fat. The next step, they reported, will be to test it with other ethnic groups to "fine-tune" the scale.

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