Body Fat Percent

Young Again.org

Body Fat Percent

- Roger Mason

As we age we not only gain weight but, more importantly, our percent of body fast rises dramatically after our teenage years. Those of us over 40 look enviously at skinny teenagers on junk food diets. It seems no matter what they do they can't get fat, and no matter what we do, we keep getting fatter. A body builder can be six feet tall, weigh 220 pounds and have 10% body fat. (The problem there is this is done with overtraining and an extreme and unhealthy high fat, high protein, no fiber, no carbohydrate ketogenic diet.) Another man can be six feet tall and weigh only 180 pounds, yet have 30% body fat or more. So, body mass index (BMI) of height to weight ratio is not very meaningful.

Do yourself a favor and go out and buy an electronic body fat scale for under $50. One popular brand is Tanita which is found at retail stores or on the Internet. The results compare very favorably and consistently with far more expensive equipment. You might find someone to dunk you in a tank of water (the ideal way) and weigh you, but that just isn't necessary. Your body fat will be about 2% higher when you wake up than when you go to bed, due to hydration during the day.

A recent study done by six different clinics and published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (v. 85, 2000) studied men aged 17 to 64. Not only was their body fat measured, but also seven of their basic hormones. The teenagers had 14% body fat, but this doubled to an average of 28% in men over 50. The researchers found that generally low testosterone, low DHEA and high insulin levels were very correlated with this. Both testosterone and DHEA fell about 50% by the age of 50, while insulin went up about 50%.

Another study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (v. 78, 2003) showed American men and women rise in body fat from age 20 to 60, and then fall (due to failing health) until they die. Men averaged about 23% throughout life, while women averaged about 35%. Women have about 50% higher levels by nature. Women can have excessive as well as deficient levels of both testosterone and DHEA, so it is even more important for them to test their levels of these two hormones. Our body fat content is simply too high and people in poor Third World countries have much lower body fat due to a lower fat diet and harder work just to survive.

You can inexpensively test your FREE levels of testosterone and DHEA-S (sulfate) at home with saliva test kits for about $30 apiece. To test for insulin resistance (not insulin itself) you need to see a doctor and get an inexpensive GTT (glucose tolerance test). You go in fasting, drink a measured cup of glucose, wait two hours and have your blood sugar tested to see how your insulin reacted with the glucose load.

Your thyroid is really important here. Have your FREE T3 and FREE T4 (not your TSH or T3 uptake) measured by a doctor. By 2005 saliva hormone kits should again be available to do this at home. Make sure you have YOUTHFUL levels and not merely "normal" range.

How does one lose weight with natural hormones? BALANCE ALL OF THEM AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. That would also include pregnenolone, melatonin, estriol (women), androstenedione (women), progesterone, estradiol, estrone, cortisol and growth hormone. All can be saliva tested except growth hormone.

Hormones and supplements are only one part of the picture. No diet aids work, so don't waste your money. MAKING BETTER FOOD CHOICES IS THE WAY TO STAY SLIM. It is fat that makes you fat, not food that makes you fat. The current "low carb" insanity of high fat, high protein, low fiber diets will kill you. You can eat all you want, not gain weight and never be hungry if you eat whole natural foods. Whole grains, beans, green and yellow vegetables, fruit, soups, salads and seafoods should be your basic foods. Please read my book "Zen Macrobiotics for Americans". Also Neal Barnard, Terry Shintani, Gary Null, Susan Powter and Robert Pritikin have written good books. Our hunger instinct is literally much stronger than our sexual desire, so you are never going to be able to go hungry. Make better food choices and balance your hormones as much as possible to stay slim all your life.