Fasting Respiratory Quotient as a Predictor of Long-Term Weight Changes in Non-Obese Women

Background/Aims: The identification of metabolic and environmental predictors of excess body fat is still far from being achieved. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether respiratory quotient in non-obese women is a predictor of body weight changes after a 6-year follow-up period. Methods: Forty-three non-obese healthy women participated in the study. Their baseline general characteristics were: age 40.5 ± 12.8 years; height 159 ± 7 cm; weight 61.8 ± 10.1 kg, and body mass index (BMI) 24.4 ± 3.8 kg/m². At baseline basal metabolic rate and respiratory quotient were determined by indirect calorimetry, while weight and BMI were recorded at the first observation and after the 3- and 6-year follow-ups. Results: At the first observation basal metabolic rate was 5,360 ± 713 kJ/day and respiratory quotient 0.850 ± 0.052. After 6 years, with weight changes equal to 1.4 ± 4.5 kg, baseline respiratory quotient was a significant predictor (p < 0.05) of changes in body weight or BMI together with baseline BMI. Conclusions: This follow-up study confirms that a high respiratory quotient (measured on free diet) predisposes to weight gain, especially in women with the highest baseline respiratory quotient (above the 90th percentile of the distribution for this variable).

[1]  S. Fowler,et al.  Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle intervention or metformin. , 2002 .

[2]  S. Klaus,et al.  Habitual fat intake and basal fat oxidation in obese and non-obese Caucasians , 2002, International Journal of Obesity.

[3]  T. Valle,et al.  Prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus by changes in lifestyle among subjects with impaired glucose tolerance. , 2001, The New England journal of medicine.

[4]  B. Swinburn,et al.  Long-term (5-year) effects of a reduced-fat diet intervention in individuals with glucose intolerance. , 2001, Diabetes care.

[5]  L. Pérusse,et al.  No association between resting metabolic rate or respiratory exchange ratio and subsequent changes in body mass and fatness: 5½ year follow-up of the Québec Family Study , 2000, European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

[6]  E. Ravussin,et al.  Low plasma leptin concentration and low rates of fat oxidation in weight-stable post-obese subjects. , 2000, Obesity research.

[7]  A. Astrup,et al.  The role of low-fat diets in body weight control: a meta-analysis of ad libitum dietary intervention studies , 2000, International Journal of Obesity.

[8]  Rena R Wing,et al.  Skeletal muscle fatty acid metabolism in association with insulin resistance, obesity, and weight loss. , 1999, American journal of physiology. Endocrinology and metabolism.

[9]  N. Halaihel,et al.  Heterogeneity of pig intestinald-glucose transport systems. , 1999, American journal of physiology. Cell physiology.

[10]  O. Pedersen,et al.  Impact of the v/v 55 polymorphism of the uncoupling protein 2 gene on 24‐h energy expenditure and substrate oxidation , 1999, International Journal of Obesity.

[11]  J. Simoneau,et al.  Overexpression of muscle uncoupling protein 2 content in human obesity associates with reduced skeletal muscle lipid utilization , 1998, FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

[12]  Respiratory quotient is inversely associated with muscle sympathetic nerve activity. , 1998, The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism.

[13]  W. Garvey,et al.  Effects of mutations in the human uncoupling protein 3 gene on the respiratory quotient and fat oxidation in severe obesity and type 2 diabetes. , 1998, The Journal of clinical investigation.

[14]  Fat balance in obese subjects: role of glycogen stores. , 1998, American journal of physiology. Endocrinology and metabolism.

[15]  L. Scalfi,et al.  Fasting respiratory quotient as a predictor of weight changes in non-obese women , 1998, International Journal of Obesity.

[16]  J. Salas-Salvadó,et al.  The respiratory quotient as a prognostic factor in weight-loss rebound , 1997, International Journal of Obesity.

[17]  E. Ravussin,et al.  Dietary fat and human obesity. , 1997, Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

[18]  A. Prentice,et al.  Covert manipulation of the ratio of dietary fat to carbohydrate and energy density: effect on food intake and energy balance in free-living men eating ad libitum. , 1995, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[19]  S. Toubro,et al.  Failure to increase lipid oxidation in response to increasing dietary fat content in formerly obese women. , 1994, The American journal of physiology.

[20]  S. Toubro,et al.  Obesity as an adaptation to a high-fat diet: evidence from a cross-sectional study. , 1994, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[21]  J. Sorkin,et al.  Fasting respiratory exchange ratio and resting metabolic rate as predictors of weight gain: the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging. , 1992, International journal of obesity and related metabolic disorders : journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity.

[22]  E. Ravussin,et al.  Low ratio of fat to carbohydrate oxidation as predictor of weight gain: study of 24-h RQ. , 1990, The American journal of physiology.