Principles Of Estimating Body Fat Percentage - Tanita UM-051 Instruction Manual

PRINCIPLES OF ESTIMATING BODY FAT PERCENTAGE

Tanita Body Fat Monitor/Scales allow you to determine your body fat
percentage at home as easily as you measure your weight.
What is Body Fat Percentage?
Body fat percentage is the percentage of fat in your body. Too much body
fat has been linked to conditions such as high blood pressure, heart
disease, diabetes, cancer, and other disabling conditions.
With this device, persons 18 and 19 years old should use the evaluation
scale for persons 20 - 39 years old, and persons age 80 and over should
use the evaluation scale for persons age 60 - 79.
The BIA Method
Tanita Body Fat Monitor/Scales use the BIA (Bioelectrical Impedance
Analysis) technique. In this method, a safe, low-level electrical signal is
passed through the body. It is difficult for the signal to flow through fat in
the human body, but easy to flow through moisture in the muscle and other
body tissues. The difficulty with which a signal flows through a substance
is called impedance. So the more resistance, or impedance, the signal
encounters, the higher the body fat reading.
Body Fat Percentage Fluctuations in a Day
Hydration levels in the body may affect body fat readings. Readings are
usually highest in the early waking hours, since the body tends to be
dehydrated after a long night's sleep. For the most accurate reading, a
person should take a body fat percentage reading at a consistent time of day
under consistent conditions.
Besides this basic cycle of fluctuations in the daily body fat readings,
variations may be caused by hydration changes in the body due to eating,
drinking, menstruation, illness, exercising, and bathing. Daily body fat
readings are unique to each person, and depend upon one's lifestyle, job
and activities.
GB
Tanita's patented "foot-pad"
design sends a safe, low-
level electrical signal
through the body to
determine its composition.
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