Sex-, age-, and ethnicity-dependent variation in body composition: Can there be a single cutoff?

Abstract

Among all the body compartments, muscle stands as an important prognostic factor in clinical settings. Several factors may determine the body composition variability, such as age, sex, and ethnicity. Muscle mass gradually declines with normal aging, and the rate of decline can be influenced by sex and ethnicity. In general, men have a higher muscularity than women, and the amount of muscle mass differs among the ethnicities (African American > White > Hispanic > Asian). Several body composition analysis techniques can be used for muscle mass assessment. Low muscularity is usually defined as muscle mass below the normative values of a healthy young population or values that are associated with a higher risk for negative outcomes in clinical situations. The association between muscle and adverse health outcomes may be jeopardized if sex, age, and ethnic specific cutoff values are not used to identify low muscularity.