What is Bioelectrical Impedence Analysis (BIA)?
ActiveX Savvy Body Fat Scale shares 13 important body parameters through the ActiveX app. These body compositions describe percentages of Fat, Bone, muscle, and water in your body.
This calculation is done by using a method called Bioelectric Impedance Analysis (BIA), which divides your weight into different components, such as Fat mass and lean mass, to access your health and help you guide you through your fitness journey.
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) is a method of determining impedance by administering alternating electrical currents to a person to calculate their water volume using impedance readings.
This non-invasive method involves the placement of electrodes on a person’s feet or hands or both. A low-level electrical current is sent through the body, and the flow of the current is affected by the amount of water in the body. BIA devices measure how this signal is impeded through different types of tissue (muscle has high conductivity but fat slows the signal down).
As BIA determines the resistance to flow of the current as it passes through the body, it provides estimates of body water from which body fat is calculated using selected equations.
Household body fat scale manufacturers across the world mostly use the BIA measurement method.
Some other methods used to calculate body fat percentages are:
- Skinfold Calipers
- Hydrostatic Weighing
- Air Displacement Plethysmography
- Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry (DEXA)
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).
We have explained these methods in the next blog.
All these methods use different processes and formulas for calculating body fat percentages. Hence, their readings usually do not end up matching. You would always find different readings for each of these methods.
The best thing you can do is not to be concerned about the difference of values between different devices, but rather focus on the relative changes of the value measured by the same device over a long period.
Sticking with the same assessment system will likely yield a better overall picture of a person's health status. Again, we must stress that relative changes in value are more meaningful than the absolute value of a single measurement.
Hope this helped you understand what BIA is and how it works. If you still have any questions or concerns, please ping us below and we would be happy to help you.
Be Fit. Go far.
