Workshop Proceedings: Health and Job-Specific Body Composition Standards for the U.S. Air Force
Abstract
This proceedings document summarizes discussions that took place during the Health and Job-Specific Body Composition Workshop, sponsored by the USAF School of Aerospace Medicine and supported by the Crew System Ergonomics Information Analysis Center (CSERlAC). The workshop was held at the David H. Ponitz Sinclair Center at Sinclair Community College in downtown Dayton, Ohio on August 24, 1999. It is a companion document to the CSERlAC Review and Analysis, Health and Job-Specific Body Composition Standards for the US Air Force, Volumes I, II, and III This document includes written comments submitted by selected subject-matter experts on the R&A, as well as the workshop proceedings and pertinent discussions on the US Air Force Fitness Program. The main findings of this Workshop include specific and general suggestions. The specific suggestions are: a) as a minimum, BMl should be used as an age-independent measurement of body composition health screening across all services, b) remedial actions would be determined by the individual services, c) fat free mass is the best candidate for a safer and simpler performance predictor of muscular strength, and d) fat free mass could be used as a screening tool for those individuals who want to participate in physically challenging Air Force Specialty Codes. It is also a logistically convenient measure. The general suggestions are: a) determining exact levels of performance and corresponding fitness levels (i.e., strength, fat-free mass/body composition) necessary for specific jobs requires much more scrutiny and will likely incorporate a direct measure of strength. h) more data is needed in several areas, including injury report databases for civilian and military populations if body composition is to be considered further, and c) fat-free mass should only be considered as a limited surrogate for measures of strength.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 24, 1999
- Accession Number
- ADA388136
Entities
People
- Barbara Palmer
- Michael E. Rench
- Stefan H. Constable