Sometimes, health tracking accuracy is overrated

it is adaptera weekly newspaper sent from the verge senior reviewer victoria song It analyzes and discusses the latest devices and medications that claim they are going to change your life. opt in for adapter Here.

About three years ago, a doctor told me I needed to lose belly fat. He didn’t care about the fat on my lower belly. He pinched me and said, it’s subcutaneous fat. She wanted me to aim to lose about five pounds of fat above my navel because that’s where visceral fat resides. not losing weight; He said, my BMI and weight are fine. I needed thick Loss because I had borderline high cholesterol and a mildly elevated liver enzyme. Given my diagnosis of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (now known as Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome), they were convinced that Type 2 diabetes was just around the corner for me unless I immediately improved my body composition.

He suggested I invest in a smart scale – as well as commit to a vegan diet. I ignored the latter (and, a few months later, I changed doctors when he recommended a questionable dieting podcast). But I started working on smart scales a little more seriously, beginning a multi-year journey of despair.

Smart scales use a method called bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) to give you an analysis of your body fat, lean mass, and bone mass. (Some high-tech smart scales include other metrics, but it depends on the device.) The gist is that a weak electrical current is sent through your body. Fat, muscle and other types of tissue have different levels of conductivity, so based on the measured resistance, an algorithm estimates how much of each you have. They are more accessible to consumers than other diagnostic methods, but they can be extremely inaccurate. It is very easy to have two BIA scales and get vastly different results.

For example, this morning I stepped on three different smart scales: two from Withings (one only measures through your legs; the other has more advanced segmented body analysis), and the third from a company called Twin Health. When I go for my monthly doctor follow-up, I’m measured by the InBody scale, which is a fancy version of the smart scales people have at home. Two weeks ago, I went to a sports clinic to get my first dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan, which shoots low-powered X-rays through your body to provide details of your body composition, including bone density. It is often considered the “gold standard” in clinical settings. None of these tools have ever given me the same percentage of body fat.

In fact, here are my most recent readings for each scale:

Granted, I couldn’t take all of these measurements on the same day, so some variation is to be expected. However, they were all taken within two weeks of each other, after fasting and first thing in the morning. All these devices claim some degree of accuracy. Withings claims that the technology of its BodyFit scale – which includes a retractable handle and a total of eight electrodes – was subjected to an internal clinical study of 80 participants and found to have a 99 percent correlation with DEXA scans. Let’s say the DEXA scan is the most accurate. I’m seeing a difference of 5 to 12 percentage points between it and other devices. There is a 17 percentage point difference between my highest and lowest readings. He Important Difference.

And that’s just one metric. My metrics on lean mass (everything But Fat) also varies wildly. DEXA, Withings BodyFit and InBody break down your body composition by body parts, such as torso, legs and arms. that reading Too A difference of 5 to 8 percentage points. Some also estimate bone density and visceral fat. Would you believe that there is some significant variation in my measurements too?

For example, the DEXA scan says that my bone density is extremely excellent and that my skeleton accounts for about 4.1 percent of my total body weight. Withings says 3.7 percent. On a scale of 1 to 20, the two Withings scales estimate my visceral fat at 1.9 and 2.1, respectively. (1 to 12 is fine, 13 to 20 is high risk.) Inbody’s estimate is 14. My DEXA scan says I have 1.24 pounds of visceral fat and ideally, I would get that number down by a pound or so.

Am I good? Frankly, it depends on who you ask. I’m sure even the most hardcore fitness influencers would say that I’m obese and that I desperately need to fix myself up and get in shape. DEXA and InBody both gave me a C- score for my body composition. Ten years ago, I probably would have been extremely concerned about health issues and would have been busy trying to figure out which of these devices was the “most accurate” and which number was the “most true.”

The real truth is that it doesn’t make much difference.

I do not have long term DEXA results. they are scanned expensive (ranging from $75 to $300 a pop), and generally, it’s recommended that you only get these every three to six months. But the scan was something I did to prove a point: The accuracy of these devices doesn’t matter that much. Stability. DEXA scans are highly accurate, with a diagnostic margin of error of about 1 to 2 percent — but it also depends on the facility you go to, the machine calibration, and your hydration levels. The first DEXA scan takes stock of where you are. Subsequent scans are where you start to see useful data about whether you’re making progress or not. This is true without paying attention Which body composition method do you choose – whether it’s an expensive clinical measurement or the cheapest-possible smart scale you picked up during a Prime Day sale. Unless each method is “wrong” by roughly the same margin of error every time, the most useful data they provide are your long-term trends.

Again, none of these devices ever recorded the same numbers for me. Even something as simple as my weight can vary by as much as three-tenths of a pound, controlling for all other factors. but what are they all Did The same overall story had to be told with my trends. The percentage of body fat and visceral fat decreased by equally significant amounts. Lean mass percentage either remained stable or increased slightly. Of the methods measuring skeletal muscle, he fell slightly short. My bone density has remained the same. Overall, these are all signs that my treatment plan is working and point to the same overall recommendations: prioritize rebuilding lost muscle, continue monitoring for side effects, review my blood tests every quarter, and continue until my doctor is happy with my condition.

This concept also applies to other wearables, like smartwatches and more basic fitness trackers. Daily numbers don’t matter as much as your weekly and monthly trends. If you want to move further, it doesn’t matter if the Apple Watch says you took 9,000 steps and Whoop says you took 8,000 steps. Worrying about which one is “more correct” misses the point entirely. What matters is that whatever tracker you choose, it measures the same mile-long distance and approximately the same number of steps (or GPS distance) every time.

There are some nuances to this. I started taking body composition analysis more seriously three years ago because a doctor had scared the shit out of me. Since then, I’ve experimented with about eight different scales and body composition techniques of varying degrees of smartness. Until my DEXA scan, I never had a reliable idea of ​​what my body fat percentage was. I still don’t do it. Here’s what I know: My body composition does not respond to traditional lifestyle interventions. Turns out, I have insulin resistance. This makes it easier to gain fat, resulting in increased insulin resistance. I never learned this from a BIA gadget! Focusing on any individual metric—be it from a wearable, a scale, or a blood test—will never be the key to uncovering my metabolic dysfunction. I was never going to self-adapt my way out of unlucky genetics.

Health and fitness wise, I have felt better. I also felt very bad. All my numbers right now paint a very mixed picture. If I’m not careful I could get lost in the bushes. But the overall trend? I’m on a better path than before and that’s the most important thing.