Final answer:
During puberty, males experience greater growth in muscles and bones compared to females. Females tend to have more body fat than males, which is necessary for reproduction due to hormone levels. The distribution of body fat also differs between males and females.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the adolescent growth spurt, greater growth in muscles and bones occurs in males than females. In males, the shoulders and chest broaden relative to the hips, whereas the reverse occurs in females: the pelvis and hips widen relative to the shoulders and chest. Male muscles may continue to grow and gain in strength for a year or more after growth in height is finished. Females also experience a major increase in body fat during adolescence, especially in the breasts and hips. All of these sex differences in growth during puberty account for the sexual dimorphism in adult human body composition and shape.
Gender: Men have a greater muscle mass and a lower body fat percentage. Thus men have a higher basal metabolic rate than women. The BMR of females declines more rapidly between the ages of 5 and 17 than that of males.
Measuring Body Fat Content
Water, organs, bone tissue, fat, and muscle tissue make up a person's weight. Having more fat mass may be indicative of disease risk, but fat mass also varies with sex, age, and physical activity level. Females have more fat mass, which is needed for reproduction and, in part, is a consequence of different levels of hormones. The optimal fat content of a female is between 20 and 30 percent of her total weight and for a male is between 12 and 20 percent. Fat mass can be measured in a variety of ways. The simplest and lowest-cost way is the skin-fold test. A health professional uses a caliper to measure the thickness of skin on the back, arm, and other parts of the body and compares it to standards to assess body fatness. It is a noninvasive and fairly accurate method of measuring fat mass, but similar to BMI, is compared to standards of mostly young to middle-aged adults.
Where the fat is deposited and accumulates within the hypodermis depends on hormones (testosterone, estrogen, insulin, glucagon, leptin, and others), as well as genetic factors. Fat distribution changes as our bodies mature and age. Males tend to accumulate fat in different areas (neck, arms, lower back, and abdomen) than do females (breasts, hips, thighs, and buttocks). The body mass index (BMI) is often used as a measure of fat, although this measure is, in fact, derived from a mathematical formula that compares body weight (mass) to height. Therefore, its accuracy as a health indicator can be called into question in individuals who are extremely physically fit.