WHAT IS TOTAL BODY WATER PERCENTAGE?
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Total Body Water Percentage is the total amount of fluid in a person’s body expressed as a percentage
of their total weight.
Water plays a vital role in many of the body's processes and is found in every cell, tissue and
organ. Maintaining a healthy total body water percentage will ensure the body functions efficiently and will reduce the risk
of developing associated health problems.
Your body water levels naturally fluctuate throughout the day and night. Your body tends to be dehydrated after a long
night and there are differences in fluid distribution between day and night. Eating large meals, drinking alcohol,
menstruation, illness, exercising, and bathing may cause variations in your hydration levels.
Your body water percentage reading should act as a guide and should not be used to specifically determine your absolute
recommended total body water percentage. It is important to look for long-term changes in total body water percentage
and maintain a consistent, healthy total body water percentage.
Drinking a large quantity of water in one sitting will not instantly change your water level. In fact, it will increase your
body fat reading due to the additional weight gain. Please monitor all readings over time to track the relative change.
Every individual varies but as a guide the average total body water percentage ranges for a healthy adult are:
Female :
45 to 60%
Male :
50 to 65%
Source
: Based on Tanita's Internal Research
Note:
The total body water percentage will tend to decrease as the percentage of body fat increases. A person with a high
percentage of body fat may fall below the average body water percentage. As you lose body, fat the total body water
percentage should gradually move towards the typical range given above.
WHAT IS BASAL METABOLIC RATE (BMR)?
WHAT IS BMR?
Your Basal Metabolic Rate(BMR) is the minimum level of energy your body needs when at rest to function effectively
including your respiratory and circulatory organs, neural system, liver, kidneys, and other organs. You burn calories when
sleeping.
About 70% of calories consumed every day are used for your basal metabolism. In addition, energy is used when doing
any kind of activity however; the more vigorous the activity is the more calories are burned. This is because skeletal
muscle (which accounts for approximately 40% of your body weight) acts as your metabolic engine and uses a large
amount of energy. Your basal metabolism is greatly affected by the quantity of muscles you have, therefor increasing your
muscle mass will help increase your basal metabolism.
By studying healthy individuals, scientists have found that as people age, their metabolic rate changes. Basal metabolism
rises as a child matures. After a peak at the age of 16 or 17, it typically starts to decrease gradually.
Having a higher basal metabolism will increase the number of calories used and help to decrease the amount of body fat.
A low basal metabolic rate will make it harder to lose body fat and overall weight.
HOW DOES A TANITA AN IRONMAN BODY COMPOSITION MONITOR CALCULATE BMR?
The basic way of calculating Basal Metabolic Rate BMR is a standard equation using weight and age. Tanita has
conducted in-depth research into the relationship of BMR and body composition giving a much more accurate and
personalized reading for the user based on the impedance measurement. This method has been medically validated
using indirect calorimetry (measuring the breath composition).*
*Reliability on equation for Basal Metabolic Rate: At 2002 Nutrition Week : A Scientific and Clinical Forum and
Exposition Title: International Comparison: Resting Energy Expenditure Prediction Models: The American Journal of
Clinical Nutrition
