Social and public health issues in adaptation to low energy intakes

Article Abstract:

Nutrition scientists have theorized that people who do not obtain enough energy from the diet may adapt to the reduced calorie intake. In situations of marginal energy intake, metabolism may slow down and the individual may become less active; decreased metabolic rate and decreased activity conserve energy. Throughout the Third World, food supplies are often inadequate and unreliable, particularly in agricultural societies which have a season of harvest and a season of scarcity. A review of the literature concludes that the most effective means of adapting to low energy intake is by reducing physical activity. But this can have deleterious consequences; when the individual becomes less active, food deprivation may worsen. In farming communities, intense physical labor is necessary to generate the food supply, and in urban areas, inactivity may lead to reduced income from employment. Food deprivation causes weight loss and a reduction in the metabolic rate, the rate at which the body burns calories. The latter outcome may be beneficial in that it conserves energy and protects the individual against further weight loss. A critical issue is whether this process represents adaptation, the successful adjustment to less than ideal nutrition, or malnutrition. Adaptation is viewed as having no adverse effect on the individual whereas malnutrition is linked to fatigue, illness and other negative consequences. The policy implications are extensive; if it is concluded that people in developing countries adapt to marginal energy intake, then less economic and food aid can be justified. One expert panel calculated the energy requirement of people in developing countries in two ways, one by the standard method and the other for the adapted state, which made a lower intake acceptable. This is similar to lowering the poverty line, because it shifts large numbers of people out of a risk category and into the mainstream. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Research, Reports, Social policy, Demographic aspects, Developing countries, Food and nutrition, Public health, Poor, Energy metabolism, Adaptation (Biology), Evolutionary adaptation, Malnutrition

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Effect of drinking soda sweetened with aspartame or high-fructose corn syrup on food intake and body weight

Article Abstract:

Artificial sweeteners are used to provide a desirable sweet taste to foods without adding calories. However, studies of the short-term effects of the sweeteners indicate that any sweet oral stimulation by artificial sweeteners or naturally-occurring sugars triggers a reflex that increases appetite. The long-term effects of the sweeteners are less clear, as different studies have reported weight gain, no effect, or ingestion of fewer calories. In this study, nine women and 21 men of normal weight were each given soda sweetened with aspartame (APM) for three weeks; soda sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which is regular soda, for another three weeks; and no soda for a third three-week period. During the study periods when they received the sodas, subjects were asked to drink four 10-ounce bottles daily. Subjects were also required to keep records of everything they ate throughout the nine weeks. The reported calorie intake of both males and females decreased when they drank APM-soda as compared with no soda, but only the men, and not the women, lost weight. Calorie intake and body weight increased in both females and males when they drank the HFCS-soda. The sugar intake from other foods decreased during both periods of soda intake, but intake of other nutrients was not affected. The study indicates that compared with HFCS-soda, soda sweetened with APM decreases total dietary sugar intake and may help reduce calorie intake and body weight. Further research is needed. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Soft drinks, Obesity, Body weight, Aspartame, Diet therapy, Carbonated beverages, Synthetic sweeteners

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