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  • Review Article
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Digital anthropometry: a critical review

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 72, pages 680–687 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

Anthropometry, Greek for human measurement, is a tool widely used across many scientific disciplines. Clinical nutrition applications include phenotyping subjects across the lifespan for assessing growth, body composition, response to treatments, and predicting health risks. The simple anthropometric tools such as flexible measuring tapes and calipers are now being supplanted by rapidly developing digital technology devices. These systems take many forms, but excitement today surrounds the introduction of relatively low cost three-dimensional optical imaging methods that can be used in research, clinical, and even home settings. This review examines this transformative technology, providing an overview of device operational details, early validation studies, and potential applications. Digital anthropometry is rapidly transforming dormant and static areas of clinical nutrition science with many new applications and research opportunities.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the input provided by optical device manufacturers on the operational details of their respective systems.

Author contributions

SBH, BB, BKN, MJS, XL, and JAS drafted the manuscript; SBH and JAS provided necessary logistical support; SBH, BB, BKN, MJS, XL, and JAS edited the manuscript for intellectual content and provided critical comments on the manuscript.

Funding

This work was partially supported by two National Institutes of Health NORC Center Grants P30DK072476, Pennington/Louisiana; and P30DK040561, Harvard; and R01DK109008, Shape UP! Adults.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA

    Steven B. Heymsfield & Brianna Bourgeois

  2. Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Bennett K. Ng, Markus J. Sommer & John A. Shepherd

  3. Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA

    Bennett K. Ng & John A. Shepherd

  4. School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA

    Xin Li

Authors
  1. Steven B. Heymsfield
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  2. Brianna Bourgeois
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  3. Bennett K. Ng
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  4. Markus J. Sommer
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  5. Xin Li
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  6. John A. Shepherd
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Correspondence to Steven B. Heymsfield.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Heymsfield, S.B., Bourgeois, B., Ng, B.K. et al. Digital anthropometry: a critical review. Eur J Clin Nutr 72, 680–687 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-018-0145-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-018-0145-7

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