Identifying Body Composition Measures That Correlate with Self-Compassion and Social Support

TL;DR

This study identifies specific body composition measures that correlate with self-compassion and social support, suggesting their potential as biomarkers for psychosocial well-being among college students.

Contribution

It demonstrates that physiological body composition metrics are significantly associated with psychological and social well-being indicators, providing new insights for mental health assessment.

Findings

Trunk and leg impedance are key physiological indicators.

Mindfulness and social support measures correlate with body composition.

Body metrics can serve as biomarkers for psychosocial well-being.

Abstract

This study explores the relationship between body composition metrics, self-compassion, and social support among college students. Using seasonal body composition data from the InBody770 system and psychometric measures from the Lived Experiences Measured Using Rings Study (LEMURS) (n=156; freshmen=66, sophomores=90), Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA) reveals body composition metrics exhibit moderate correlation with self-compassion and social support. Certain physiological and psychological features showed strong and consistent relationships with well-being across the academic year. Trunk and leg impedance stood out as key physiological indicators, while mindfulness, over-identification, affectionate support, and tangible support emerged as recurring psychological and social correlates. This demonstrates that body composition metrics can serve as valuable biomarkers for indicating self-perceived psychosocial well-being, offering insights for future research on scalable mental health modeling and intervention strategies.