Year: 2016
Type: letter
Abstract: The recent Obesity publication by Fothergill et al. (1) on the "The Biggest Loser" contestants (BLC) asserts that intensive exercise-centric intervention, despite fat-free mass (FFM) retention, leads to persistent metabolic adaptation (MA), thwarting long-term weight loss success.Their case rests upon predicting resting metabolic rate (RMR) using a newly developed, unvalidated, regression-derived equation [different from their previous equation in the same population (2)], with potentially error-prone weighted variables.The authors used baseline BLC data to predict RMR at subsequent time points in the same subjects.This is concerning, given the small sample (n 5 16, which makes identifying four robust predictors statistically suspect), lack of validation in an independent sample, and the fact that the 1,000 kcal/day y-intercept is high compared with other established, validated equations.When we apply their data to these other equations, the predicted RMR is much lower and the apparent MA is less prominent.
Source: Obesity
DOI: 10.1002/oby.21638
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2512776629