NUTR 442 - NUTRITION ASSESSMENT LABORATORY
EXPERIMENT 2 - ASSESSMENT OF BODY COMPOSITION LABORATORY I
OBJECTIVE: To give students the experience in collecting and analyzing
anthropometric data useful in the determination of body composition.
PRE-LABORATORY PREPARATION:
1. Read this document carefully before your laboratory period. It will help prevent you
from making mistakes, speed up your work, and prepare you for asking any questions
about procedures that need clarifying.
2. Dress appropriately for this laboratory. For skinfold thickness measurements, we will
need access to the top of your shoulder, tip of the elbow, tricep, bicep, the scapula on
your back, area just above the top of your pelvis. For circumference measurements, we
will need access to your thigh, calf, hip, waist, forearm, and upper arm. We will also be
measuring your height and weight again. If direct measurement on your skin is not
desirable for certain sites, try to wear thin and lightweight garments.
DATA TO BE COLLECTED:
1. Age
2. tricep skinfold thickness
3. bicep skinfold thickness
4. subscapular skinfold thickness
5. suprailiac skinfold thickness
6. body circumferences appropriate for age and sex
7. height
8. weight
9. Hydrodensitometry values (HPELS room 202, MW 2-4, TR 1-5, no food or drink
2 hrs prior, swim suit and towel, sign up for reservation, get data from
technician including weight in air, weight in water, density of water, residual
lung volume, volume of gas in GI tract; if RV not available, estimate from
equation on p198; if VGI not available, use 0.1 liters)
DETERMINE THE FOLLOWING:
1. Percentile tricep skinfold (Appendix N, p 545-546)
2. Percentile subscapular skinfold (Appendix O, p 549-550)
3. Percentile tricep skinfold + subscapular (Appendix P, p 551-552)
4. Body fat % by skinfold method of Durnin & Womersley (table 6-9, p 200);
conversion of BD to %BF using both Brozek and Siri equations (p 200)
5. Body fat % by circumference method of Katch & McArdle (see below)
6. Body fat % by hydrodensitometry (figure 6.37, p 202-203) Use the value of %
body fat provided by the technician in the Exercise Science Lab. We will do
the calculations ourselves by hand next lab period. Be sure to get all of the
