Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, or BIA, is considered one of the most exact and accessible methods of screening body fat. In conventional BIA, a person is weighed, and then height, age, gender and weight or other physical characteristics such as body type, physical activity level, etc. are entered in a computer.

Simply explained, BIA measures the impedance or resistance of a small electrical current as it travels through the water that is found in muscle and other cells in the body. The more muscle a person has, the more water their body can hold. The greater the amount of water in a person's body, the easier it is for the current to pass through it. The more fat, the more resistance to the current. BIA is safe and it does not hurt. In fact, the signal used in body fat monitors cannot be felt at all by either adult or child.

Why is Body Composition Important to My Health?

Research has shown that body composition is directly related to health. A normal balance of body fat is associated with good health and longevity. Excess fat in relation to lean body mass can greatly increase your risks to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cancer. BIA fosters early detection of an improper balance in your body composition, which allows for earlier intervention and prevention. BIA also provides a measurement of fluid and body mass that can be a critical assessment tool for your current state of health.

BIA also serves to measure your progress as you work to improve your health. Improving your BIA measurement, or maintaining a healthy BIA measurement, can help keep your body functioning properly for healthy aging and reduced risk to illness. With your BIA results, we can recommend a personalized dietary plan and track your overall progress towards your goals.

What Must I Do To Prepare for the Feel Good Nutrition & Fitness BIA Testing?

Note: People with pacemakers should not use Bioelectrical Impendence for body composition analysis.

Resistance: Resistance is the ratio of electrical potential to the current in a material. A material with low resistance conducts well whilst a material with high resistance conducts poorly. The primary conductor in the human body is water. In the human body, a low resistance is associated with large amounts of lean body mass. A high resistance is associated with smaller or low amounts of lean body mass.

Resistance helps to calculate the amount of water in the body. Low resistance, indicating high conductivity, is due to large amounts of water in the body. Resistance in the body is proportional to the amount of lean body mass since water is contained primarily within lean body mass.

Fat-Free Mass: Fat-free mass, also referred to as lean body mass, is the total amount of nonfat (lean) parts of the body. It is comprised of muscle, bone, tissue, water, and all other fat free mass in the body. Lean body mass contains the majority of the body's water, metabolically active tissues and bone, and is the source of metabolic calorie expenditure.

Fat Mass: Fat mass is all the extractable lipids from adipose and other tissue in the body. It is the total amount of stored lipids (fats) in the body and consists of subcutaneous fat and visceral fat. Subcutaneous fat is located directly beneath the skin and serves as an energy reserve and as insulation against outside cold. Visceral fat is located deeper within the body and serves as an energy reserve and as a cushion between organs. Everyone needs a certain amount of fat in their body. The ideal fat % is dependent on age and gender.

Basal metabolic Rate (BMR): This is the number of calories consumed and metabolized at a normal resting state over a 24 hour period. For a typical person, BMR accounts for about 60-70% of their total daily expenditure. This simply means that the majority of the energy we expend daily is used to maintain normal bodily functions such as respiration and circulation. Basal metabolic rate is determined by lean body mass. Therefore, the greater the individual's lean body mass, the greater the rate of caloric expenditure. One of the many benefits of exercise is the maintenance of lean body mass.

Dieting alone may cause a reduction in lean body mass and can actually reduce the body's ability to burn calories. One of the principles of weight management is to maintain or increase lean body mass. Since this is not always possible during weight loss, the goal is to minimize reduction of lean body mass.

Body Mass Index (BMI): This is a measure of a person's weight relative to their height. Please be aware this classification has limitations as it does not distinguish between fat mass and fat-free mass.

Total Body Water (TBW): Total body water is the amount of water retained in the body. TBW typically comprises between 50%-70% of total body weight. In general, men tend to have higher water weight than women due to a greater amount of muscle.

**A progressive increase in lean body mass is associated with increasing physical performance and health. With the use of the BIA to monitor key indicators of health and fitness, Feel Good Nutrition & Fitness can develop, monitor and manage diet, nutrition and exercise programs that lead to improved overall physical condition.