North Allegheny Intermediate High School
Health & Physical Education
350 Cumberland Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15237
Dear Parent or Guardian:
The purpose of this letter is to inform you that your son or daughters physical education class will be participating in body fat
percentage assessments within the next two weeks and also to provide answers to frequently asked questions.
Why are students being assessed for body fat % in physical education?
As you are aware, Pennsylvania mandated that along with the annual height and weight screening, the Body Mass Index
(BMI) should be calculated and the results provided to the child’s parent/guardian. The law specified implementation to begin
in the 2005-2006 school year with a tiered phase in. However, the North Allegheny School District was proactive and began
parental notification of screening and BMI information in the 2004-2005 school year for all students. In the secondary
schools, these Health Report Cards are mailed home via the nurse’s office. This year, they were mailed home in February.
BMI is a “weight for height” index that can be used to help determine whether a student is within a normal growth pattern. It is
a screening tool and not a definitive measure. A number of different methods can be used to determine if someone is
underweight, a healthy weight, overweight, or obese. Some methods are based on the relationship between height and weight
such as BMI; others are based on measurements of body fat. The most commonly used method today is the body mass
index. (It is a common method used, due to its ease of use and low cost.) BMI does not directly measure percent of body fat,
but it is a more accurate indicator of overweight and obesity. Weight or BMI alone are not clear indicators of good health
because they do not distinguish between pounds that come from body fat and those that come from lean body mass or
muscle. A person who is carrying too much fat has a condition called obesity. This puts a person at risk for many serious
medical conditions including heart disease, diabetes and even certain forms of cancer. In fact, obesity contributes to at least
half of the chronic diseases in western society.
The preceding information is the reason that our physical education department has made the decision to institute body fat
percentage assessments in addition to the state required BMI assessments. This is not to say that the national trend of
increasing obesity rates is not affecting North Allegheny. Our students face many issues including those attached to body
image. Through piloted testing done over the past several years we have found that giving our students honest reliable
information on what is a healthy body fat percentage, where they are in relation to those health standards, and how to make
lasting positive changes in their diet and exercise habits are the best ways to promote responsible lifestyles and a healthy
body image.
Will this assessment be part of my child’s physical education grade?
No. As with all health related fitness assessments that students perform as part of their physical education classes their
actual scores (time, repetitions, or body fat %) do not affect their grade in any way. However, your child’s ability to self assess
their personal fitness level compared to recognized healthy fitness levels, identify trends in their own personal fitness, and
demonstrate related subject knowledge does affect their grade. The intent of these assessments is to encourage students to
take responsibility for their personal choices, especially as they pertain to pursuing a healthy lifestyle.
How is your son or daughter being assessed?
We will be assessing students using Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis or BIA. BIA is considered one of the most reliable and
accessible methods of screening body fat. In conventional BIA, a person is weighed, then height, age, gender and weight or
other physical characteristics such as body type, or physical activity level are entered in a computer. While the person is
standing on electrodes that are on the surface of the scale, a small electric signal is circulated. Simply explained, BIA
measures the impedance or resistance to the signal as it travels through the water that is found in muscle and fat. The more
muscle a person has, the more water their body can hold. The greater the amount of water in a person's body, the easier it is
for the current to pass through it. The more fat there is within the body, the more resistance to the current. BIA is safe and it
does not hurt. In fact, the signal used in body fat monitors can not be felt at all either by an adult or child.
“If you don’t take care of your body, where will you live?”
During the assessment, students will remove their shoes and step onto the
scale barefoot (the scale is sanitized between each user). The students will be
individually assessed and discreetly handed their results immediately after
completing the assessment. Students are encouraged not to share their
results with other students and to respect others privacy by not asking to see
others results.
Key to sample print out abbreviations.
1) BMR: Basal Metabolic Rate represents the total energy expended by the
body to maintain normal functions at rest such as respiration and circulation.
2) Impedance: The body’s inherent resistance to an electrical current. Muscle
acts as a conductor of the electrical current, adipose tissue (fat) acts as a
resistor.
3) FFM: Fat Free Mass is comprised of muscle, bone, tissue, water, and all
other fat free mass in the body.
4) TBW: Total Body Water is the amount of water retained in the body. TBW
is said to comprise between 50% to 70% of total body weight. Generally, men
tend to have higher water weight than women due to a greater amount of
muscle.
Can my son or daughter opt out of the body fat % assessment?
Yes, they can opt out of completing the actual assessment but they are still
responsible for demonstrating the knowledge gained about health related
issues concerning too little or too much body fat.
Where to go for more information
Resources:
http://www.panaonline.org/programs/khz/youthobesityprevention.php
Sincerely,
Dave Schmidt
North Allegheny School District
Health & Physical Education Department Chairman
DSchmidt@northallegheny.org
Please sign and return this portion of the letter to your child’s physical education teacher indicating that you have read the attached letter
and whether or not you give permission for your child to have their body fat % assessed.
Students Name (please print)
I give permission for my child to be assessed.
I do not give permission for my child to be assessed.
“If you don’t take care of your body, where will you live?”