Association of Neck Circumference with Anthropometric Indicators and Body Composition Measured by DXA in Young Spanish Adults

Background: Due to a clinical and public health interest of neck circumference (NC), a better understanding of this simple anthropometric measurement, as a valid marker of body composition is necessary. Methods: A total of 119 young healthy adults participated in this study. NC was measured over the thyroid cartilage and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the neck. Body weight, height, waist circumference (WC), and hip circumference were measured. A Dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan was used to determine fat mass, lean mass, and visceral adipose tissue (VAT). Additionally, body mass index (BMI) and triponderal mass index (TMI), the waist to hip and waist to height ratios, and the fat mass and lean mass indexes (FMI and LMI, respectively) were calculated. Results: NC was positively associated in women (W) and men (M), with BMI (rW = 0.70 and rM = 0.84, respectively), TMI (rW = 0.63 and rM = 0.80, respectively), WC (rW = 0.75 and rM = 0.86, respectively), VAT (rW = 0.74 and rM = 0.82, respectively), Waist/hip (rW = 0.51 and rM = 0.67, respectively), Waist/height (rW = 0.68 and rM = 0.83, respectively) and FMI (rW = 0.61 and rM = 0.81, respectively). The association between NC and indicators of body composition was however weaker than that observed by BMI, TMI, WC and Waist/height in both women and men. It is of note that in women, NC was associated with FMI, VAT and LMI independently of BMI. In men, adding NC to anthropometric variables did not improve the prediction of body composition, while slight improvements were observed in women. Conclusions: Taken together, the present study provides no indication for NC as a useful proxy of body composition parameters in young adults, yet future studies should explore its usefulness as a measure to use in combination with BMI, especially in women.Funding Agencies|Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness [DEP2016-79512-R, PTA 12264-I]; Fondo de Investigacion Sanitaria del Instituto de Salud Carlos IIIInstituto de Salud Carlos III [PI13/01393]; Retos de la Sociedad [DEP2016-79512-R]; Spanish Ministry of EducationSpanish Government [FPU 13/04365]; Fundacion Iberoamericana de Nutricion (FINUT); Redes tematicas de investigacion cooperativa RETIC [Red SAMID RD16/0022]; AstraZeneca HealthCare FoundationAstraZeneca; University of Granada, Plan Propio de Investigacion 2016, Excellence action: Units of Excellence; University of Granada, Plan Propio de Investigacion 2016, Scientific Unit of Excellence on Exercise and Health (UCEES); University of Granada, Plan Propio de Investigacion 2018: Programa Contratos-Puente; Junta de Andalucia, Consejeria de Conocimiento, Investigacion y UniversidadesJunta de Andalucia; European Regional Development FundsEuropean Union (EU) [SOMM17/6107/UGR]; Fundacion Alfonso Martin Escudero; Fundacion Carolina [C.2016-574961]; Fondos Estructurales de la Union Europea (FEDER); University of Granada, Plan Propio de Investigacion 2018: Programa Perfeccionamiento de Doctores