Anthropometry of Sri Lanka sportsmen and sportswomen, with special reference to body mass index

Abstract

Weight, height (TH), sitting height (SH), skinfoid thikness and mid upper arm circumference have been measured in 235 sportsmen and 204 sportswomen, drawn from several districtsm participating in tournaments held in Colombo between March and August 1988 in order to obtain reliable data on Sri Lankan adults, to look for inter-district and inter-gan=mes diferences, and to study the suitability of a BMI less than 18.5 for diagnosis of chronic energy inadequacy. Inter-district diferences, reported in studies carried out about 40 years ago, no longer exist. Diferences between games for the variables weight, TH, SH and total body fat are significant for both genders, and for the variable BMI in the case of males. There has been a positive point, only 53perc. of women and 77.9perc. of men are categorised as being energy adequate. It is concluded that the BMR of Sri Lankan adults is probably lower than the values by the FAO/WHO in calculating energy requirements