At Body Composition Australia we offer a state of the art, high end service for those who are very serious about improving their health, getting into shape and staying there.
Whether you are an athlete monitoring your training or an everyday person trying to lose weight, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is a valuable tool to structure your exercise and dietary program.
A DEXA whole body composition scan measures body fat, bone mineral density and muscle mass to a very high degree of accuracy and precision (one tenth of a gram). This allows small changes in fat and muscle tissue to be detected over relatively short timeframes which makes it ideal for tracking the progress of your program. You will also be able to see changes in individual regions of the arms, legs and trunk as well as the whole body.
Having regular scans gives you a baseline, progress measurements, and objective calorie intake and expenditure targets based on your individual data. Knowing that you will be tested again in 8-12 weeks is also highly motivating.
By structuring a fat loss or muscle gain program around DEXA scan data, it allows a highly scientific approach to getting from A to B. What gets measured becomes more easily managed.
For 3 main groups of people:
The actual scan takes about 6 minutes to complete. While lying on the padded bed surface, the scanner arm makes a series of 7 passes over your body.
Results are then printed out and discussed, as well as a brief discussion of what needs to be done over the next 8-12 weeks. The total time allocated to the scan and consult is 30 minutes or a QuickScan option is available for the scan only with no consultation and the results emailed to you by the end of the day.
At Body Composition Australia we use a Hologic Explorer densitometer.
DEXA works by passing X-rays of 2 different energies through the tissues of the body which are blocked or attenuated relative to the density of the tissues they are penetrating. Bone, fat, and lean tissue all have characteristic densities which can be used to calculate the relative masses of each of the 3 components in any given region.
DEXA is the gold standard in body composition measurement used in over 10,000 peer reviewed publications worldwide and significantly more accurate than underwater weighing, Bodpod, bioelectrical impedance and skinfold (calipers) measure. DEXA measures whole body results compared and regional data (arms, legs, trunk).
All metal objects such as keys and wallets from the pockets as well as belt buckles and shoes need to be removed. Metal bra clips do not need to be removed. Ideally, wear clothing without metal zips or studs.
No. Please make sure this is not a realistic possibility at the time of the scan. Although there is no evidence that a scan will harm the foetus, it is not recommended to proceed if there is any possibility of being pregnant. A home pregnancy test is recommended if there is any doubt.
If you are actively trying to lose fat or gain lean mass, a minimum timeframe of 8-12 weeks is recommended. For those who are happy with their results, it may be a case of having a scan only 1-2 times per year to make sure fat and lean tissue levels are being maintained.
Yes, a very small amount. DEXA scans are one of the lowest radiation dose tests. 1 whole body scan gives a radiation dose of 0.2 µSv to the person being scanned. The average daily background radiation exposure dose is 6.3 µSv per day (in Australia). So, a DEXA whole body scan equates to an extra 2.5 hours of natural background radiation exposure. You would also receive 10 µSv on top of background flying from Sydney to Melbourne and the equivalent to a chest x-ray flying to the USA (40 – 50 µSv).
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