Associations between body mass index, body composition and bone density in young adults: Findings from Saudi cohort

The potential incidence of fractures has been predicted to increase worldwide because of the aging population. Many clinical factors affect fracture risk, such as sex, age, menopausal status, and low body mass index (BMI). An investigation is needed on the impact of the two basic components of body weight, fat mass (FM) and lean mass (LM), on BMD at young adult group. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation of body composition (FM, LM), BMI, and BMD in young people (male and female) in Saudi Arabia's eastern area. 250 participants including 100 females and 150 males (age between 18 and 22 years old), had a BMD scan via DEXA (Discovery DXA system). Variables of body composition, such as LM, FM, total fat percentage, and trunk LM, were measured using DEXA. For male and female groups, weight was significantly correlated with all other listed variables except age and fat percentage. The correlations of weight with the other variables were mostly strong (r > 0.5). A high prevalence (percentage) of osteopenia and osteoporosis was observed for both males (57%) and females (41%), respectively. Also, in both groups, there was a significant correlation between BMI, BMD and visceral fat.