Working towards a healthier lifestyle, often involves a few trips to your bathroom scale. While monitoring your weight on a weekly basis can be a helpful tool when working to reduce your weight to a healthy level, your doctor has tests that provide more precise information than a simple scale can offer you in your home.
Dr. Van Meter and Weiss of PPMA use the Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) Test. This test measures fat, muscle, bone and water and is extremely important because it tells a different story than the number on the scale.
The BIA can help you decide if you are making the correct food choices by measuring certain markers. It can also evaluate if you are eating enough protein and healthy fats, as well as the right kind of carbohydrates. If your fat mass is high, even if you read a “healthy weight” on your scale at home, your doctor can see if you need to retool your diet. For example, grains and sugar-based carbohydrates will increase your fat mass.
The test measures each of your bodies “masses” – i.e. fat, muscles, bones, water – by sending a harmless electric current through your body. The BIA measures the amount of electrical resistance of some of these masses and estimating others, it can paint a clear and accurate picture for your physician of the proportions of fat, muscles, bones and water in your body. It useful not only because of the level of detail it provides for you and your doctor, but because the level of electricity is so low, it can be administered on a regular basis (say, when you check-in with your doctor) without any detrimental effects.
With this information, you can create a customized eating plan based on the exact needs of your body. Since the test is not invasive and easy to administer, you and your doctor can effortlessly check your progress on a regular basis as well.
When you enroll in PPMA’s Lifestyle Medical Treatment program, the nutrition program focuses on arming you with the knowledge to eat healthy and to choose foods that provide the greatest benefit for your body. Certified Nutrition Consultant Stephanie Lapinski works in concert with Drs. Van Meter and Weiss to improve digestion and track progress – weight loss, fat percentage, fat pounds, water weight, etc. – with concrete medical evidence. Each visit includes a BIA test to compare your results from your previous visits.
As you grow healthier, the BIA not only monitors your body composition, but can help you maintain function, productivity, immunity, physical performance and longevity when armed with the thorough report. Check with your doctor if you are interested in a healthier (and happier) you!