Corpulence index

From WikiMD's Wellnesspedia

The Corpulence Index (CI) or Ponderal Index (PI) is a measure of leanness (corpulence) of a person[1] calculated as a relationship between mass and height.[2] It was first proposed in 1921 as the "Corpulence measure" by Swiss physician Fritz Rohrer[3] and hence is also known as Rohrer's Index.[4] It is similar to the body mass index, but the mass is normalized with the third power of body height rather than the second power.[5]

<math>\mathrm{CI} = \frac{\mathrm{mass}}{\mathrm{height}^3}</math>

with <math>\mathrm{mass}</math> in kilograms and <math>\mathrm{height}</math> in metres, giving a measure with the same dimensions as density. The corpulence index yields valid results even for very short and very tall persons.[6] Because of this property, it is most commonly used in pediatrics.[7][8] (For a baby, one can take crown-heel length for the height.[9]) The normal values for infants are about twice as high as for adults, which is the result of their relatively short legs.[citation needed] It does not need to be adjusted for age after adolescence.[5] It has also been shown to have a lower false positive rate in athletes.[10]

The corpulence index is variously defined (the first definition should be preferred due to the use of SI-units kg and m) as follows:

Formula Units for mass
(body weight)
Units for height
(or length)
Values considered normal or typical
for a 12-month-old infant beyond infancy
<math>\text{CI}=\frac{\mathrm{mass}}{\mathrm{height}^3}</math>[8] kilograms metres 24[7] 12[5]
<math>\text{CI}=1000\frac{\mathrm{mass}}{\mathrm{height}^3}</math>[7] grams centimetres (same values as above)
<math>\text{CI}=\frac{\mathrm{height}}{\sqrt[3]{\mathrm{mass}}}</math>[1][11] pounds inches 12.49 to 13.92

Significance[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Foods and Nutrition Encyclopedia, Audrey H. Ensminger, Marion Eugene Ensminger. p. 1645
  2. EXSS 323: LAB 1 - BIOMECHANICS TOOLS: Computers, Algebra and Trig Oregon State University
  3. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-ponderal-index.htm
  4. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3
  5. Lawrence F. Ditmier: New Developments in Obesity Research. Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge, New York 2006, ISBN 1-60021-296-4[page needed]
  6. 7.0 7.1 7.2
  7. 8.0 8.1 ACC/SCN NUTRITION POLICY PAPER No. 19 - Glossary Archived 2007-08-20 at the Wayback Machine by Lindsay H. Allen and Stuart R. Gillespie
  8. https://captaincalculator.com/health/weight/ponderal-index-calculator/

External links[edit | edit source]

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