Anthropometry-based estimation of body heat capacity in individuals aged 7–69 years: the Size Korea Survey 2010

Although our previously developed anthropometry-based calculation of heat capacity (HC) for adults appeared to be precise and valid, its use in children and adolescents may be associated with bias. This study investigated a large dataset from the Size Korea survey, a national anthropometric survey conducted in 2010, to revalidate our previous HC equation and to develop another one that is appropriate for children and adolescents. We enrolled 12,766 participants aged 7–69 years with body composition data measured by multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis. Age was associated with HC in children aged 7–19 years (R2 = 0.58) but not in adults (R2 = 0.007). Linear regression was appropriate to describe the relationship between HC and body surface area (BSA) in adults, whereas the regression in children and adolescent was quadratic. The previously developed HC equation had high reliability (intra-class correlation coefficient = 0.995) and predictive power (accurate prediction rate = 86.1%) in the >20 age group. The model composed of sex, body weight, BSA, and BSA2 was appropriate for the prediction of HC in young individuals aged 7–19 years. In conclusion, anthropometric-based modelling is a simple, reliable, and useful method for the calculation of HC.