Anthropometric evaluation of percentage body fat using skinfold parameters among students of Ebonyi State University

Abstract

AIM: This study investigates the anthropometric evaluation of percentage body fat using skinfold thickness among students at Ebonyi State University. MATHODOLOGY: A total of 498 participants (243 males and 255 females) aged between 18 to 32 years were recruited for this cross-sectional study. The data were analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.0, with descriptive statistics expressed as mean ± standard deviation and correlation coefficients determined for various age groups at two-tailed significance levels of <0.001 and <0.05. The percentage body fat was calculated using the Jackson and Pollock equations and the Siri method. RESULTS: The results reveal significant differences in skinfold thickness and body composition between genders across various age groups. Males exhibited higher mean values in height (169.57 cm to 172.03 cm) and weight (59.06 kg to 62.59 kg) compared to females (165.19 cm to 167.16 cm and 55.15 kg to 56.97 kg). Notably, females showed higher skinfold measurements at most sites, with significant variations observed particularly in the triceps and anterior thigh skinfolds. The correlation analyses indicated that the relationships between various anthropometric parameters were generally weak, with all p-values exceeding 0.05, thus suggesting no significant correlation. The analysis of percentage body fat across different age groups highlighted a trend of decreasing body fat for both males and females after the age of 24, with males averaging between 21.29% to 24.31% and females ranging from 22.41% to 24.73%. CONCLUSION: These findings underscore the need for targeted health interventions in university populations to promote healthy body composition, particularly among younger adults, and suggest that lifestyle factors may contribute significantly to the observed differences in body fat distribution between genders as they age.