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San Diego · Tests & scans

Body Composition Test in San Diego

How much of your weight is fat, muscle and bone, and 6 clinics in San Diego that list it.

Time
Minutes to half an hour Depends on the method
What you do
Stand on a device or lie on a table Bioimpedance or a DEXA scan
You get
Your fat and lean mass DEXA adds bone density
San Diego photograph by Tyrel Johnson · Unsplash

A body composition test splits your weight into fat and lean tissue rather than giving you one number on a scale. Clinics use two main methods. DEXA is a low-dose X-ray scan you lie still for, and it also reports bone density. Bioimpedance sends a small, painless electrical current through your body and estimates the split from how easily it travels.

People use it to see what is changing as they train or change their diet, since the scale alone cannot tell muscle gained from fat lost. The two methods are different tests, so a number from one is not directly comparable with a number from the other. Bioimpedance is offered under brands like InBody.

Physical activity in San Diego, by the numbers

The rate of physical inactivity in San Diego is lower than the national rate. About 1 in 5 adults in San Diego did no physical activity outside work in the past month, compared with about 1 in 4 nationally. That adds up to roughly 530,000 adults in San Diego County.

20.6%of adults in San Diego did no physical activity outside work in the past monthUS: 25.1%
530,000adults in San Diego did no physical activity outside work in the past monthEstimated from CDC county figures
6San Diego clinics list body composition testingSee them below
San Diego vs the US
Share of adults, 2023

CDC estimates. PLACES figures are modelled from a national health survey, not counted from medical records, so read them as estimates.

No exercise outside workSan Diego
United States
ObesitySan Diego
United States
Serious difficulty walkingSan Diego
United States
↓ Data

Source: CDC PLACES, 2023 county estimates. San Diego = San Diego County, weighted by adult population.

longevityclinicshub.com

Your regular doctor is the place to start, especially before a big change in how active you are. The tests above show where you're starting from, so progress is easier to see later.

Showing 6 clinics that list body composition testing in San Diego

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Body Composition Test: common questions

Which clinics in San Diego list body composition testing?

6 in our San Diego guide: Human Longevity, San Diego, Scripps Center for Executive Health, Timely Health, Dexa Body, San Diego, Live Lean Rx, San Diego and Sharp HealthCare Employee and Executive Health and Wellness Program.

Does it matter when I take the test?

Yes, for bioimpedance in particular. How much water you are carrying moves the result, so compare tests taken at the same time of day and in the same state, for example in the morning before eating.

How often should I retest?

Often enough to see a real change, which usually means months rather than weeks. Use the same method and, where you can, the same machine each time.

Sources: ACR and RSNA, RadiologyInfo: Bone Density Scan (DEXA); Kyle UG et al., Bioelectrical impedance analysis, part I: review of principles and methods. Clinical Nutrition, 2004; Influence of passive, diet-based hydration on muscle quantity assessment, Frontiers in Physiology

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