Chapter 3 Body Weight and Body Composition During Sixty Days of Isolation

Abstract

The aim of this study was to find the mechanisms leading to the weight changes that have frequently been observed during isolation and in spaceflight. Isolation studies with small groups impose limitations on the measurements that can be performed to simple, noninvasive methods. In this study the simple parameters of body weight and body composition, along with sodium and potassium excretion, were determined in three males and one female subject before, during and after 60 days of isolation. Our assumption was that application of these simple methods might provide valuable information, when measurements are done on a daily basis and when the pre- and post-isolation periods are taken into account. Three subjects gained weight before isolation, while one lost weight. All four subjects gradually lost weight during isolation, 1-4% of their weight on the first day of isolation. During the first post-isolation week weight remained stable. During isolation one subject lost body fat, whereas another lost body water and lean body mass, but gained body fat. The urinary electrolyte excretion pattern reflected the changes in body composition: sodium loss coincided with a decrease of total body water, and potassium loss with a decrease of lean body mass. The Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis method, used in defining changes in body composition, provided data in good agreement with those obtained with the double-labeled water method. The results reported here are in agreement with observations reported by other investigators with respect to the body weight changes and the body composition. However, it is still not understood why some subjects lose fat and others gain fat under identical conditions. Psychological factors may be involved in these individual differences. Two further points have become clear from these studies: (1) the pre- and post-isolation periods should be taken into account, (2) urinary electrolyte excretion must be seen in the context of changes in body composition, not only in the context of kidney function.