What is the standard body fat percentage for women?

When you go to the gym to sign up for a membership and work out, the organization will do a body test on the customer, which includes testing the body fat percentage. Many people don’t know what the body fat percentage is. In fact, it refers to the proportion of fat in a person’s body weight, so it is also called body fat percentage. Through this number, you can know very clearly how much fat a person has in his body. If the body fat percentage is higher, it means the more fat in the body, the more obese such a person will be, and the probability of high blood pressure, high blood lipids and other diseases will be higher, and the health will be more likely to have problems, so the body fat percentage needs to be maintained within the normal range, then what is the body fat percentage standard for women?

First, the body fat percentage standard for women

Body fat percentage (BMI) refers to the proportion of body fat weight in the total body weight, also known as body fat percentage, which reflects the amount of fat in the human body. The body fat percentage of normal adults is 15%~18% for men and 25%~28% for women. Body fat percentage should be kept within the normal range.

Second, the measurement method of body fat percentage

Fat Clip Measurement

By pinching the positions shown in the picture, you can determine the accumulation of chest fat, abdominal fat and leg fat, and then convert them according to the standard.

BIA measurement method

Traditionally, the method of measuring body fat percentage is more complicated, mainly based on DEXA measurement, but the time and cost are quite uneconomical. Therefore, in recent years, a more convenient bioimpedance measurement method has emerged, which can obtain quite accurate measurement values ​​in a very short time, suitable for use at home and by doctors in outpatient clinics.

The main principle of BIA measurement is to simply divide the body into conductive body fluids, muscles, etc., and non-conductive fat tissue. During measurement, a very small current is emitted by the electrode to pass through the body. If the fat ratio is high, the measured bioimpedance is larger, and vice versa. BIA measures body fat percentage through this mechanism.

Third, how is body fat percentage calculated?

BMI calculation method

If you want to know your approximate body fat percentage, you can use the following two formulas.

BMI = weight (kg) ÷ (height × height) (m)

Body fat percentage: 1.2×BMI+0.23×age-5.4-10.8×gender (1 for male and 0 for female).

Fourth, the harm of being overweight in women

1. Breast cancer

In general, breast cancer in women is mostly related to obesity and high-calorie diet. A large amount of data shows that obese people are 3-3.5 times more likely to develop breast cancer than normal people. Therefore, the occurrence of breast cancer is closely related to estrogen. The reason is that in addition to estrogen secreted by the ovaries, obese women also contain a substance in their fat that can be converted into estrogen. The more fat there is, the more estrogen is converted. However, the higher the estrogen level, the more likely they are to develop breast cancer.

2. Coronary heart disease, fatty liver, diabetes, cerebrovascular disease, etc.

In addition, obesity may also lead to hyperlipidemia, coronary heart disease, fatty liver, diabetes, cerebrovascular disease, etc. However, obese girls are more likely to develop diabetes when they grow up. Therefore, obesity has a great impact on life. In addition to genetics, endocrine disorders and organic diseases, the most important factor in the formation of obesity is improper diet.

3. Middle-aged women are more likely to suffer from cholelithiasis, and women with abdominal obesity are more likely to suffer from gout, etc.

4. In addition to the common hazards of obesity, obesity in women also has its own particularities.

The estrogen level in obese women is higher than that in normal women. The higher the estrogen level, the greater the risk of endometrial cancer and postmenopausal breast cancer. Therefore, obese women are at much greater risk of developing these two gynecological tumors. Increased estrogen may also cause or aggravate lower limb edema.