Body mass index misclassification of obesity among community police officers.
Occupational health nurses are at the forefront of obesity assessment and intervention and must be aware of potential inaccuracies of obesity measurement. The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of obesity among a sample of 84 male police officers 22 to 63 years old and determine the accuracy of body mass index (BMI) in estimating obesity compared to body fat percent (BF %). BMI identified 39.3% of the participants as obese, compared to 70.2% by BF %. BMI misclassified normal-weight officers as obese or overweight and obese officers as normal 48.8% (n = 41) of the time. The two misclassified groups had similar average BMIs but significantly different BF %. BMI was not an accurate measure of obesity among adult males. BMI underestimated the true prevalence of obesity and could represent a missed opportunity for early intervention and disease prevention.
College of Nursing, The University of Iowa, 50 Newton Drive, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. mohammad-alasagheirin@uiowa.edu
Mohammad H
MH
Alasagheirin
M Kathleen
MK
Clark
Sandra L
SL
Ramey
Esack F
EF
Grueskin
D000328:Adult; D000886:Anthropometry / Q000379:methods*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000451:nursing; D009785:Occupational Health Nursing / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D016495:Police / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult