Innovative research studies application of body fat machine to analyze cellular health and risk to diseases
School of Health Sciences, professors Adriano Detoni, Dr Luciano Castro and Dr Rafael Baptista, in partnership with School of Medicine professor, Dr Rita Matiello, and PhD student in Pediatrics and Child Health, Eduardo Mundstock, have published an article in the journal Clinical Nutrition. This is such a relevant journal as it is a source of reference for many researchers and health care professionals and which earns PUCRS and the study major visibility.
The article Association between Phase Angle from Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and Level of Physical Activity: Systematic Review and Metaanalysis, brings the findings of an investigation carried out by Mundstock during his doctoral program, as he was advised by Rita and co-advised by Baptista. The study used a bioimpedance machine, which is used for the analysis of body fat. This investigation is innovative in that it uses phase angle to check the participants’ health and their risks to contract diseases.
“This is what is unique about this research for it measures the health of cells. When the body gets an electrical current and there is something wrong, this angle will change”, explains Baptista. This is useful for health care professionals to conduct a physical evaluation and to measure body fat percentage, muscle mass and obesity. It can also be used to evaluate the overall health by analyzing the body’s cells.
The study involved a systematic review and metaanalysis of nine articles. The statistical results were painstakingly analyzed, which earned them more credibility as tests using the machine were carried out. “It is one of the most refined types of investigations in this area”, complements Baptista.