Sc 330st

Participants were asked to report their date of birth, sex (male or female), ethnicity (participants self-identified to standard census definitions), smoking status, postcode, medical history, and current medications. Two ethnicity groups were created for this analysis, with White British, White Irish, or any other White background being grouped as WE and Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, or any other South Asian background as SA (Yates et al., 2020 (link)).
Body weight and body composition (Tanita SC-330ST, Tanita, West Drayton, UK), height (Height Measure, Seca, Birmingham, UK), and waist circumference (midpoint between the lower costal margin and iliac crest) were measured to the nearest 0.1 kg, 0.1%, and 0.5 cm, respectively. Arterial blood pressure was measured in the sitting position (Omron Healthcare, Henfield, UK); three measurements were obtained and the average of the last two used.

Participants then underwent body composition assessment, with height measured using a stadiometer (Seca CE123, Hamburg, Germany). Body mass and body fat percentage were assessed through the use of bioelectrical impedance analysis scales (Tanita SC-330ST, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Body fat percentage was additionally confirmed using an 8-site skinfold calliper assessment (following guidelines outlined by the International Society for the Advancement of Kinanthropometry (ISAK)). Specific girth measures were undertaken for abdomen, thigh and calf locations, as well as waist to hip ratio (WHR) conforming to ISAK/ACSM guidelines. Sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) was also measured using a Holtain-Kahn abdominal caliper (model 609, Holtain Ltd., Crosswell, Pembrokeshire, UK), with visceral fat area (VFA) estimated from validated equations [40 (link)]. Anthropometric measures were undertaken in triplicate by the same researcher across the study period, with average readings for each measure used for analyses.