Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications
Publication Date
8-13-2021
Journal
Science
DOI
10.1126/science.abe5017
PMID
34385400
PMCID
PMC8370708
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
8-13-2022
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Author MSS
Published Open-Access
yes
Keywords
Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Basal Metabolism, Body Composition, Body Weight, Child, Child, Preschool, Energy Metabolism, Exercise, Female, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Male, Middle Aged, Pregnancy, Young Adult
Abstract
Total daily energy expenditure (“total expenditure”, MJ/d) reflects daily energy needs and is a critical variable in human health and physiology, yet it is unclear how daily expenditure changes over the life course. Here, we analyze a large, globally diverse database of total expenditure measured by the doubly labeled water method for males and females aged 8 days to 95 yr. We show that total expenditure is strongly related to fat free mass in a power-law manner and identify four distinct metabolic life stages. Fat free mass-adjusted daily expenditure accelerates rapidly in neonates (0-1yr) to ~46% above adult values at ~1 yr, declines slowly throughout childhood and adolescence (1-20 yr) to adult levels at ~20 yr, remains stable in adulthood (20-60 yr) even during pregnancy, and declines in older adults (60+ yr). These changes in total expenditure shed new light on human development and aging and should help shape nutrition and health strategies across the lifespan.
Included in
Biochemical Phenomena, Metabolism, and Nutrition Commons, Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Commons, Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism Commons, Nutrition Commons