Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

W H Mueller

Publications and source records attributed to W H Mueller.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Relative reliability of circumferences and skinfolds as measures of body fat distribution.

The question has arisen whether patterns of body fat distribution can be identified by body circumferences, a method which is said to be more reliable and simpler than skinfold thickness or like measures of subcutaneous fat (Ashwell et al., Int. J. Obes. 6: 143-152, 1982). Here we address the question of whether body circumferences are inherently more reliable than skinfold thicknesses in 77 intra- and 224 interexaminer replicates from the Health Examination Survey of 12 to 17-year-olds in the U.S.A. Reliability of six body circumferences (0.96) was significantly (P less than .01) higher than that of skinfold thicknesses at five sites (0.91), suggesting that circumferences are a more reliable method. However, the reliability of skinfolds is still high, and skinfolds may be used in studies which focus on preadults or other groups in which the validity of circumferences as measures of body fat distribution is unknown.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1987

Centralized obesity and cardiovascular disease risk in Mexican Americans.

The association between body fat distribution patterns and cardiovascular disease risk variables (high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, total cholesterol, diastolic and systolic blood pressures, and fasting blood glucose levels) was sought in a sample of Mexican American adults who were studied during 1981-1983 in Starr County, Texas. In the sample, all diabetics were excluded to see whether centralized obesity carried any risk for cardiovascular disease independent of diabetes. A component of centralized body fat distribution was identified through the use of principal components analysis of five skinfold measurements, which included the upper and lower extremities and trunk areas. The centralized obese were compared with generalized (peripheral) obese and nonobese controls in four subgroups of the population: younger and older adult males and females. The means of all cardiovascular risk variables were in a direction indicating that the centralized obese were significantly at greater risk than nonobese controls (in particular, HDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, and blood glucose levels). The generalized obese differed from the centralized obese in having significantly lower blood glucose levels, and tended to be intermediate between centralized obese and nonobese controls in the other variables. The data confirm that centralized obesity as defined by a linear combination of skinfold measures works in the same way as the waist-to-hip circumference ratio in describing a body build factor which heightens the risk of cardiovascular disease in the obese independent of the clinical diabetic state.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Body circumferences as alternatives to skinfold measurements of body fat distribution in Mexican-Americans.

The ratios of circumferences (waist/hip, waist/thigh) have been proposed in lieu of skinfold measurements for studies of obesity and body fat distribution. The purpose of this paper is to present our experience in measuring a series of body circumferences and skinfolds in an obese population, and seek the relationship between these two kinds of variables as indicators of fatness and body fat distribution using canonical correlation analysis. With this method, weighted vectors of circumferences on the one hand and skinfolds on the other, are formed in such a way that the correlation between the two sets of variables is maximized. The weights (regression coefficients) and their signs help us select the best combination of circumferences which describe a component of centralized obesity. Our experience showed that 21 percent of women would have been excluded from this multivariate analysis due to skinfolds what could not be measured (mainly due to poor fold definition). Few men were so excluded (6 per cent), and almost all circumferences could be measured in both sexes. A first canonical correlation was substantial (0.84 in women, 0.89 in men) and appeared to relate to level of fatness. A second canonical correlation was moderate (0.59 in women, 0.42 in men) and statistically significant (P less than 0.01) in both sexes. Only in women was it independent of age, but in both sexes it reflected differences in central and peripheral (especially lower limb) fat. The simple waist/thigh ratio correlated well with the second canonical variate (0.79 in women, 0.67 in men).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1985

Alternative measurements of obesity: accuracy of body silhouettes and reported weights and heights in a Mexican American sample.

The assessment of obesity by anthropometry or body composition in studies of chronic disease epidemiology is not always feasible. In this paper we test the accuracy and validity of two alternative methods: body silhouettes and reported weights and heights in a sample of Mexican American adults (n = 166) participating in the Diabetes Alert Study. The body silhouettes were those developed by A. Stunkard and colleagues. We compared the silhouettes obtained independently by three different observers, one with minimal experience in assessing obesity, the other two skilled in anthropometry. Correlations between the expert observers were 0.89-0.90. Those between the expert and less skilled observers were lower (0.64 to 0.85) and were better for female than male subjects. Results suggest an acceptable level of precision for persons with some training in obesity assessment. Body silhouettes compared well with the body mass index (r = 0.85 to 0.92 for the expert vs r = 0.65 to 0.84 for the less skilled observer), being higher for female subjects. The body silhouettes are thus useful for categorizing normal, overweight and obese individuals. The poorer performance on male subjects may relate to the female-like obesity depicted in both sexes in this particular set of silhouettes. A substantial proportion of subjects could not recall their weight or height. For those who could recall their measurements, accuracy was good but measurement error higher than that for measured variables. These problems of recall in this sample from rural Texas point to the potential usefulness of the body silhouette method when actual height and weight measurements cannot be made.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

The Diabetes Alert study: growth, fatness, and fat patterning, adolescence through adulthood in Mexican Americans.

Diabetes Alert is a multidisciplinary genetic and epidemiological study of Type II (non insulin-dependent) diabetes in Texas Mexican Americans. We report the anthropometry of 1,155 individuals 10 to 70 or more years with particular reference to overweight, fatness, and anatomical fat patterning in the sample. Children ages 10-18 of both sexes are growing at the 50th percentile of the reference data (U.S. Health and Nutrition Examination Survey-1) for height, Wt/Ht2, and triceps and subscapular skinfolds. Adults are well below median height but well above median Wt/Ht2 and skinfolds. Prevalence of obesity (Wt/Ht2 greater than or equal to 30) among adults is typically 30% or higher by age 30. Diabetics compared to age/sex-matched non diabetics have shorter sitting heights, have more upper body fat (subscapular skinfold), have less lower body fat (lateral calf skinfold), and were heavier at maximum weight and at age 18. The ratio of lower to upper body fat distribution decreases over the life cycle, being highest at adolescence and lowest at ages 40-50 in both sexes. Our results show a precipitous weight gain after maturity in the sample and an association of diabetes with differences in anatomical fat patterning. The age-related changes in fat patterning need to be explained in terms of their ecological and genetic influences.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1984

The bacon Chow study: effects of maternal nutritional supplementation on birth measurements of children, accounting for the size of a previous (unsupplemented) child.

Studies on nutritional supplementation of pregnant mothers have observed small but sometimes significant effects on fetal growth. Previously we also reported significant changes in physical resemblance of siblings at birth due to this kind of supplementation, using data collected by the late Dr. Bacon Chow and associates. This suggested that components of variation in physical growth may change as a result of supplementation. To explore this further, we sought the effects of nutritional supplementation on somatic growth, holding constant the birth measurements of a previous (unsupplemented) sibling. Only head circumference at birth came close to showing a statistically significant (P less than 0.06) supplement effect on its mean (+ 0.36 cm) when the measurement of the first infant was held constant. Both increases and decreases in weight for length as assessed by Rohrer's Index (wt/l3) occurred with supplementation. Increases in the index occurred by a significant (P less than 0.01) gain in birth weight (238 g) between 1st and 2nd siblings in the supplement group but not in the placebo group. Decreases in this index resulted from a significant gain in birth length (1.3 cm) in supplemented families with a previous (untreated) sibling having a below average length for average weight. These non-linear effects on somatic growth suggest that responses to maternal nutritional supplementation may be more effective in a subgroup of the population where the normal adaptive responses to low energy protein intakes may have failed or where nutritional conditions over pregnancy may have varied considerably.

Biometry↗
PubMed1984

The Bacon Chow study: effect of nutritional supplementation on maternal weight and skinfold thicknesses during pregnancy and lactation.

Effects of a feeding programme on maternal weight, triceps and subscapular skinfolds during pregnancy and lactation were assessed in a marginally undernourished population of rural Taiwan. Mothers participated during two pregnancy and lactation periods. At 3 weeks after the delivery of the first infant, one group of 114 mothers began consuming a nutrient-dense supplement (A), while another group of 111 received a placebo (B). There was no significant A-B difference in pregnancy weight gain (A 7.52 kg, B 7.75 kg) or in mean maternal weight, triceps or subscapular skinfolds at any time during pregnancy or lactation. Despite a general trend toward moderate weight loss during lactation, one-third of mothers in both groups gained weight. Highly significant increases in weight and skinfold thicknesses from one lactation period to the next characterized both groups. The absence of demonstrable supplement-effects on maternal anthropometry concomitant with increments in infant birth weight supports the notion that infants can benefit from maternal supplementation without changes in maternal nutritional status.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The Bacon Chow study: maternal supplementation and infant growth.

The effect of maternal supplementation during both gestation and lactation on infant growth from birth to 12 mth was investigated in the double-blind, randomly allocated control trial conducted in Taiwan by the late Bacon F. Chow. The supplement was a milk-based formula providing 800 kcal and 40 g protein daily. The placebo provided less than 40 kcal per diem but resembled the supplement in appearance. Supplementation was limited to mothers and began after birth of one infant and continued without interruption until weaning of a second infant. Supplement effects were tested by comparing both supplement and placebo groups and first- and second-infant groups with respect to weight, length and head circumference. Both comparisons of growth curves and analyses of variance were carried out. Both strategies agreed in failing to detect differences in growth between supplement and placebo groups. However, differences were found between first and second infants in the supplement group.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The Bacon Chow study: maternal nutritional supplementation and infant behavioral development.

The effect of maternal nutritional supplementation during pregnancy and lactation on the mental and motor development of infants was studied in a rural population in Taiwan. Women were randomly assigned to 2 treatment groups: 1 received a high-calorie and protein supplement ("supplement" group); the other received a placebo ("control" group). Infants received no direct supplementation. At approximately 8 months of age, the mental and motor development of the infants was assessed using a research to maternal supplementation in either scale, nor were the mental scale scores of infants of supplement mothers significantly higher than infants of control mothers. However, the motor scores of supplement infants were higher than those of control infants, which is consistent with the findings of 2 other large-scale nutritional supplementation studies.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Accumulation of insulin and glucagon in the liver (via portal vein catheter or with liposomes) does not stimulate liver cell regeneration after partial hepatectomy in normal or portocaval shunted rats.

The regenerative activity of the liver parenchyma after two-thirds hepatectomy was examined in normal rats and rats with a fresh or 7-day-old portocaval shunt. The parameter for regeneration was the incorporation of 3H-thymidine into DNA. The exogenous supply of insulin and glucagon--both potential stimulators of regeneration--by permanent infusion into the portal vein, or by several injections of the liposome-encapsulated hormones, did not significantly stimulate the rate of regeneration normally controlled by endogenous pancreatic hormones.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

The changes with age of the anatomical distribution of fat.

During adolescence and the third decade of life a redistribution of bodily fat is occurring away from the extremities towards the trunk. During this time the process is occurring in both sexes although more rapidly in males than females, hence it is a masculinizing process. The process is seen in human populations from various ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Masculinizing characteristics like this one are predictors of chronic diseases such as diabetes and atherosclerosis late in life. The period from adolescence through young adulthood may be a sensitive time for the development of characteristics that predispose one to the chronic diseases of aging. Socioanthropological investigations of chronic disease related to human obesity may benefit by focusing on this developmental period.

Adipose Tissue↗