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Body Capacitance

An indicator of the quantity of healthy cell membranes in the body.

Body capacitance is the absolute amount of energy storage of the body during the BIA test due to intact cellular membranes. A high capacitance indicates large amounts of intact cellular membranes. A low capacitance indicates lower amounts. Cell membranes are very important in cell function since they control what enters and leaves the cell and also control the cell activity in the body – higher intact membranes = more activity and vice versa.

Capacitance is proportional to the size of the body cell mass compartment or number of cells and to the integrity of the cellular membranes (i.e. how well the cell membrane functions).   Increased capacitance is always good because it represents an increase in the number of cells, their quantity, or both.  However, if capacitance is decreasing, it is important to remember that this may be due to a decrease in body cell mass related to weight loss in an otherwise healthy patient.