The BIAdata Base Project

The initial idea:

To build up a data-base of BIA raw data within a wide range of age, weight and other body composition relevant variables. This should form the basis for the estimation of „normal values“ for the German population and further on to evaluate if these statistical “values” are “good and relevant values” from a health point of view.
Requirements:

The measurement of the BIA data must have been undertaken following international used standards and with paying attention to well known limitations (see: standards for scientific BIA measurements).
Data base:

For 25 years we have built up a data base of BIA raw-data. As the „Cologne BIA man“ I performed more than 30.000 R and Xc measurements (50 kHz mono-frequency BIA analyser) of people within a large range of age, weight and physical activity.

Together with well-trained co-workers more than 500.000 „cleaned“ individual BIA raw-data combined with BIA relevant variables have been collected during this period.

The long term aim:

Building up an international BIA data-pool using different BIA techniques (tetra polar mono-frequency 50 kHz, BIS, segmental) and including as many BIA relevant variables as possible (age, sex, ethnic group, physical activity).

Realisation:

Worldwide partners, BIA research groups and qualified BIA users may ask for cooperative project membership. They will get access to add data to the data bank system following a reliable standard. Furthermore, they may use the data for their own research by comparing with other BIA data. In addition this platform may be used as a forum to discuss with experts the latest results in BIA research.

Benefit:

All BIA users and research groups will get access to a growing data base for better adjustment of different body composition prediction models regarding the different actuating variables (measurement method, age, sex, ethnic group, physical fitness,  …), and for comparing their own measurements with reference values.

This may help to promote the use of biological impedance analysis as the most reliable tool for observing body composition parameters in epidemiological studies and thus in fighting against increasing obesity and the resulting chronic diseases in many industrial countries.