CHANGES IN SOMATOTYPE CHARACTERISTICS IN THE MIDDLE-AGED BULGARIAN MEN.

Objective: the objective of this cross-sectional research was to outline the different somatotypes and the trends in the changes of the three basic components (endomorphy, mesomorphy and ectomorphy) among the middle-aged Bulgarian men.

Material And Methods: the Heath-Carter method was used to identify the anthropometric somatotypes of 860 adult men, aged 30-50 years old, from the city of Plovdiv, located in Central Bulgaria. The men were divided into 4 age groups, in five-year intervals. In each case body height, weight and a series of skinfolds, circumferences and diameters were measured to calculate the somatotype. The SPSS package was used for the statistical analysis.

Results: the results show a prominent endo-mesomorphic model in the study sample of male population. We found age-related increase of the values of the musclebone component, retention of the level of the fatty component and a decline in the ectomorphy. Regardless the quantitative changes of the three components, the correlation between them remains constant and the mean somatotype is preserved. A greater variety of morphotypes is found in the group of men aged 30-35. The most homogeneous group is that of the 45-50 year old men. This group is entirely dominated by the mesomorphic component (strength), and the endomorphic component (obesity) is greater than the ectomorphic one (linearity).

Conclusion: the study finds that in the years between 30 and 50 the men tend to build muscle rather than fat. The 50 year-old men are more mesomorphic than the men at the age of 30, but they are shorter and with less elongated body segments.