Date of Award

2019

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Education

Department

College of Education and Human Services

First Advisor

Little, Kathleen

Subject Headings

Health Education, Health Sciences

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of various BIA devices compared to a criterion, the Bod Pod. It was hypothesized that (1) there would be no significant difference in the various BIA devices (Seca, Inbody, Tanita, Omron) as compared to the Bod Pod, for validity and reliability, (2) there would be no significant difference in total body water as measured by the Seca and Tanita, and (3) there would be significant differences in weight as measured by four of the five devices (Bod Pod, Seca, Tanita, Inbody). Methods: Forty participants, ages 18-31 years, 20 female and 20 males, were included in this study. Participants were tested on five devices (Bod Pod, Seca, Tanita, Omron, and Inbody), on the same day. A repeated measures ANOVA was used to assess device differences for percent fat and lean mass. For device differences, protected t-tests were used. Pearson correlations were used to assess predictive validity of each device vs the Bod Pod. Results: For percent fat, the Omron (20.5%) significantly (p < 0.05) underestimated percent fat as compared to all other devices: Bod Pod (24.1%), Seca (24.5%), Inbody (24.6%), Tanita (23.6%). The Omron also significantly (p < 0.05) overestimated lean mass as compared to all other devices. Reliability of each device was high (r2 range = 0.995-1.000). There were no significant differences in total body water measured on the Seca (89.3 l) and the Tanita (90.0 l) BIA devices. For body weight, the Seca (73.5 kg) and the Inbody (73.7 kg) were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than the Bod Pod (73.4 kg) and the Tanita (73.4 kg). Conclusion: The Omron significantly underestimated percent fat and overestimated lean body mass when compared to all other devices. The Seca, Inbody, and Tanita all showed acceptable validity as compared to the Bod Pod. However, the Omron is not recommended for body composition analysis.

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