AUTHOR=Chen Fangfang , Wu Lijun , Chen Yiren , Wang Jing , Liu Junting , Huang Guimin , Hou Dongqing , Liao Zijun , Zhang Ting , Xie Xianghui , Liu Gongshu 

TITLE=A comparison of bioelectrical impedance analysis and air displacement plethysmography to assess body composition in children

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1164556

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2023.1164556

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Background: Accurate assessment of body composition (BC) is important to investigate the development of childhood obesity. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is portable and inexpensive compared to air displacement plethysmography (ADP) for the assessment of BC and is widely used in children. However, studies of the effectiveness of BIA are few and present different results, especially in pediatric populations. The aim of the study was to evaluate the agreement between BIA and ADP for estimating BC.
Methods: The BC of 981 Chinese children (3-5 years) was measured with BIA (SeeHigher BAS-H, China) and ADP (BOD POD).
Results: Our results showed that BIA underestimated FM and overestimated FFM in normal weight children (P < 0.05), but the opposite trend was shown in children with obesity (P < 0.05). The agreement between FM and FFM measured by the two methods was strong (CCC > 0.80). The linear regression equation of 5-year-old children was constructed.
Conclusions: The SeeHigher BAS-H multi-frequency BIA device is a valid device to evaluate BC in Chinese preschool children compared with ADP (BOD POD), especially in 5-year-old children or children with obesity. Further research is needed to standardize the assessment of BC in children.