Premium
Recommended Daily Caloric Intake
Author(s) -
Bernardin Charles P.,
Moller Aage
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.854.2
Subject(s) - caloric theory , caloric intake , calorie , overweight , medicine , body mass index , obesity , population , demography , gerontology , body weight , weight loss , zoology , mathematics , environmental health , endocrinology , biology , sociology
Using recent advances in Predictive Calorimetry due to Mifflin's equation (1990), we derive an accurate standard for daily caloric intake for adults who wish to maintain a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI). Although the USDA publishes recommendations for daily intake of macronutrients, at this time there is no specific recommendation for total daily caloric intake. Yet, there is no single variable in nutrition more important in controlling obesity than daily caloric intake. Our recommendation is that this standard should be the daily caloric intake needed to maintain a BMI of 25. The results of this study are presented in two Calorie tables (one for US men and another for US women) and as one simple equation that closely approximates the caloric values in these tables: R D C I x 003 D ; A × H e i g h t x 2010 ; B × A g e x 2010 ; Cwhere RDCI is Recommended Daily Caloric Intake and has units of kcal, Height is in units of inches, and Age is given in years. We apply this standard for a range of heights and ages that span the majority of the US adult population and demonstrate that it is best described as a set of iso‐calorie contours which significantly limit the caloric intake of normal weight individuals as they age. To maintain a BMI of 25, we show that 80 year old people need to consume almost 20% less than they could when they were twenty. We recommend that overweight people wanting to maintain a healthier weight begin by estimating their specific energy needs as defined by their RDCI .