Energy Intake Rate Research Articles

Ammonotely in a neotropical frugivorous bat as energy intake decreases

We tested the role of increased ammonia in urine as an energy- and/or nitrogen (N)-saving mechanism in the great fruit-eating bat Artibeus lituratus (Phyllostomidae). We compared N excretion in two groups of bats fed energy-rich (2.75 kJ g(-1) wet mass) or energy-poor diets (0.7 kJ g(-1) wet mass). Within each diet, bats were assigned to different N contents. In order to function as an energy-saving mechanism, ammonia production should increase with decreasing energy intake. To function as an N-saving mechanism, ammonia production should increase with decreasing N intake. Because we varied both diet energy density and N content, our study design allowed us to test these two possibilities simultaneously. Bats had higher food intake rate and, consequently, higher N intake rate on the energy-poor diet, but energy intake rate was lower. Most bats on the energy-rich diet were ureotelic whereas on the energy-poor diet bats were ureotelic, ammonotelic or ureo-ammonotelic. Bats fed the energy-poor diet had a higher excretion rate of ammonia and a higher percent of N excreted as ammonia. Percent N ammonia and ammonia excretion rate were inversely related to energy intake, but they were not related to N intake. By favoring ammonia production over urea, bats on the energy-poor diet may save up to 1% of their basal metabolic rate. Consumption of energy-dilute fruits by fruit bats might affect the way in which N wastes are excreted, favoring the excretion of ammonia N when food intake is accompanied by the ingestion of large volumes of water.

Weight is controlled by eating patterns, not by foods or drugs: Reply to comments on “Satiety. No way to slim”

The five papers in this special section of Appetite seem to agree that augmentation of satiety at an unspecified delay by use of a medication or food product in an indeterminate context provides no assurance that the substance contributes to reduction of obesity. Rather, satiety that slims is a specific pattern of eating that reduces the rate of energy intake while that pattern persists. These scientific principles have major implications for research that could provide the evidence needed to regulate claims to deliver weight-controlling satiety or to reduce discomfort allied with hunger arising from attempts to reduce weight. Since satiating efficacy is an attribute of a specified pattern of eating, it cannot be the property of any substance, even one that supports such appetite-reducing behaviour. Hence the evidence required depends on identifying the eating customs that are effective in long-term control of weight, in words that enable members of the public to make their own selections among those obesity-preventative practices and to use a food or a drug in a way that supports such a dietary habit. We hope that these four comments and our more extensive reply help to clarify issues that are crucial to slowing the rise in obesity.

Energy intake, kleptoparasitism risk, and prey choice by Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens) foraging on sea stars

ABSTRACT. Energy gain is thought to play a central role in prey selection by most foragers, but it may conflict with food theft avoidance and be constrained by undeveloped foraging skills. We investigated predation by the Glaucous-winged Gull (Larus glaucescens) on the ecologically important Ochre Sea Star (Pisaster ochraceus). We tested the hypothesis that Pisaster size selection by gulls was based on energetic profitability, defined as energy provided per unit handling time. We then examined the degree to which profitability interacts with intraspecific kleptoparasitism risk and age-related foraging efficiency (i.e., energy intake rate, prey capture success) to produce the patterns of prey choice observed in a natural setting. Behavioral observations of free-living gulls revealed moderate to high (32.5–91.6%) occurrences of Pisaster in gull diets. We used handling time data and bomb calorimetry to determine the relationship between Pisaster size and energetic profitability, which informed prey offer exp...

A comparison of two screening methods to determine the validity of 24-h food and drink records in children and adolescents

Dietary assessment in humans is hampered by the phenomena of under and overreporting of energy intake, when food records are used to evaluate habitual dietary intake. Different methods to evaluate mis-reporting have been proposed using cut-offs derived from estimates of reported energy intake and basal metabolic rate, or, from predictions of total energy expenditure. This study compares the effect of using two different cut-off approaches to screen food records for validity, completed by a large cohort of Australian children (n=2460), from Grades 1, 5 and 10 (aged 5-17 years). Energy intake was calculated from 24-h food and drink records for each child. These data were screened using the Goldberg and McCrory cut-offs. The effect of using these two cut-offs on the collected dataset was explored by considering the mean and standard deviation of energy intake in each year level before and after the cut-offs were applied. The use of the Goldberg cut-off resulted in 9% of the total cohort being classified as underreporters, with 60% of these subjects being in Grade 10. The McCrory cut-offs revealed that overall, 22% of the total cohort underreported EI. 33.3% of Grade 1 children were classified as overreporters with this value falling to about 20% of Grade 10 children, while 10-15% of Grade 1 children underreported, with this figure rising to about 30% in Grade 10. Both the Goldberg and McCrory approaches have their advantages and disadvantages, and we suggest that consideration should be given to the reason for screening data before a particular approach is used, with recognition that these methods do differ in their aims and outcomes. The McCrory method consistently classified a greater number of children as underreporters.

Physiological responses of two sublittoral nassariid gastropods to hypoxia

Anthropogenic hypoxia of coastal bottom waters now affects hundreds of thousands of km 2 worldwide. The present study investigated the physiological responses of 2 sublittoral nassariid gastropods, Nassarius conoidalis and N. siquijorensis, to hypoxia using endpoints, including scope for growth (SfG) and the related energy budget items (i.e. rate of energy intake from food, rate of energy lost to respiration and rate of energy lost to excretion) over a 31-d laboratory experiment. Our results showed that after exposure for ≥8 d, the stronger hypoxia treatment of 1.5 mg O2 l -1 significantly reduced the rate of energy intake for Nassarius siquijorensis, while N. conoidalis stopped feeding in the same treatment. SfG was sig nificantly reduced in N. siquijorensis after exposure to 1.5 mg O2 l -1 during the mid and late exposure period. Exposure to ≤3 mg O2 l -1 also resulted in a negative SfG for N. conoidalis, except for the weaker hypoxia treatment during the late exposure period. Nassariid gastropods occur in great abundance in Hong Kong waters; therefore, any adverse effect on these gastropods may lead to major ecological consequences, including altered trophodynamics and disrupted nutrient recycling processes in coastal ecosystems.

FTO Variant, Energy Intake, Physical Activity and Basal Metabolic Rate in Caucasians. The HAPIEE Study

The FTO gene variants are the most important genetic determinants of body weight and obesity known so far, but the mechanism of their effect remains unclear. We have analyzed FTO rs17817449 variant (G>T in first intron) in 6024 adults aged 45-69 years to assess the potential mediating role of diet and physical activity. Diet was assessed by a 140-item food frequency questionnaire. Physical activity was measured by hours spent during a typical week by sport, walking and other activities outside of work requiring heavy and medium physical activity. Basal metabolic rate was calculated according Schofield formula. The FTO variant was significantly associated with body mass index (means in GG, GT and TT carriers were 28.7, 28.2 and 27.8 kg/m(2), p<0.001) and basal metabolic rate (BMR) (means in GG, GT and TT were 1603, 1588 and 1576 kcal per day, respectively, p<0.008) but it was not associated with physical activity, total energy intake or with energy intakes from fat, carbohydrates, proteins or alcohol. Results were essentially similar in men and women and the adjustment for physical activity or dietary energy intake did not reduce the effect of the FTO polymorphism. Means of BMR per kg of body weight was lowest in GG carriers (20.09, 20.21 for GT and 20.30 for TT, p<0.006) and this effect was more pronounced in females. These results suggest that the effect of the FTO rs17817449 variant on BMI in Caucasian adults is not mediated by energy intake or physical activity, but some effect on BMR per kg of body weight is possible.

Energy gains predict the distribution of plains bison across populations and ecosystems

Developing tools that help predict animal distribution in the face of environmental change is central to understanding ecosystem function, but it remains a significant ecological challenge. We tested whether a single foraging currency could explain bison (Bison bison) distribution in dissimilar environments: a largely forested environment in Prince Albert National Park (Saskatchewan, Canada) and a prairie environment in Grasslands National Park (Saskatchewan, Canada). We blended extensive behavioral observations, relocations of radio-collared bison, vegetation surveys, and laboratory analyses to spatially link bison distribution in the two parks and expected gains for different nutritional currencies. In Prince Albert National Park, bison were more closely associated with the distribution of plants that maximized their instantaneous energy intake rate (IDE) than their daily intake of digestible energy. This result reflected both bison's intensity of use of individual meadows and their selection of foraging sites within meadows. On this basis, we tested whether IDE could explain the spatial dynamics of bison reintroduced to Grasslands National Park. As predicted, bison distribution in this park best matched spatial patterns of plants offering rapid IDE rather than rapid sodium intake, phosphorus intake, or daily intake of digestible energy. Because the two study areas have very different plant communities, a phenomenological model of resource selection developed in one area could not be used to predict animal distribution in the other. We were able, however, to successfully infer the distribution of bison from their foraging objective. This consistency in foraging currency across ecosystems and populations provides a strong basis for forecasting animal distributions in novel and dynamic environments.

Toward a more complete (and less controversial) understanding of energy expenditure and its role in obesity pathogenesis.

The global obesity epidemic has stimulated intense interest in the study of homeostatic mechanisms governing the balance between energy intake and energy expenditure over time, and recent progress in gene targeting and related technologies has pushed mouse models to the forefront of this effort. Although current methods for the measurement of energy expenditure (EE) in mice are sensitive, reproducible, and widely available, their potential to inform the study of obesity remains limited by controversy regarding how best to control for the powerful, independent impact on EE of variation in body size per se (1,2). In this article, we briefly review the recent work that has fueled this controversy and propose an approach to its resolution. We also highlight aspects of EE measurement relevant to obesity pathogenesis that merit additional study. Although we focus on studies in mice, the principles presented can be applied to most other animal models. Dramatic increases in the prevalence of obesity and its burden of health and economic consequences heighten the need for new insights into mechanisms that govern energy balance. At a superficial level, the problem of obesity resolves to simple math: energy balance, defined as the difference between rates of EE and energy intake (EI), sums over time to determine body energy content stored as fat mass (FM). Hence, obesity can be seen as the consequence of a sustained increase of energy intake relative to energy expenditure. This simplistic thermodynamic explanation, however, belies a far more complex pathophysiology that is crucial for understanding why weight loss is so difficult to achieve and sustain in obese individuals. At the core of this complexity is a biological process termed energy homeostasis, through which energy intake and expenditure are matched over long time intervals to promote the stability of FM. This process is influenced by …

Adaptive character of metabolism in Eothenomys miletus in Hengduan Mountains region during cold acclimation

Environmental factors play an important role in the seasonal adaptation of body mass and thermogenesis in small, wild mammals. The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that ambient temperature was a cue to trigger the seasonal adjustments in body mass, energy intake, uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) in brown adipose tissue (BAT), and other biochemical characteristics of Eothenomys miletus during 49 days of cold exposure. Our data demonstrated that cold acclimation induced a remarkable decrease in body mass, a significant increase in energy intake and metabolic rate, and high expression of UCP1 in BAT of E. miletus. Biochemical characteristics of BAT and liver respiration were also increased following cold acclimation. These data suggest that E. miletus reduced the body mass and increased energy intake and expenditure under cold acclimation. Increased expression of UCP1 was potentially involved in the regulation of energy metabolism and thermogenic capacity following cold acclimation.

Satiety. No way to slim

This short overview considers a prospect that claims to boost satiety are used to prescribe or sell materials to dieters that do not slow their daily rate of energy intake, thereby worsening their problems with body weight and even perhaps increasing the prevalence of obesity. Implying that a drug or a food contributes to weight control by providing extra satiety is a mistake in two ways. First, the notion of a hormone analogue or a food constituent having a specifiable satiating power is scientifically incoherent. Secondly, a slimming satiety is a particular pattern of eating and drinking, in which substances have no fixed roles. Such a dietary custom has to be shown to produce a larger step decrease in weight with the medication or food product than without it. Suppression of food intake at a usual time for eating does not imply reduction in the eater's total intake of energy in a calendar period and hence lower weight while the material is still used within that eating pattern. It is the maintained pattern of behaviour that slims and prevents regain, not a satiety-augmenting substance. Regulators should not allow incomprehension of the basic science of energy balance to be exploited by advocacy of a food or medication for “satiety” believed by consumers to be a means of avoiding unhealthy fatness.

Peak energy turnover in lactating European hares: a test of the heat dissipation limitation hypothesis

It has been suggested that maximum sustained metabolic rate (SusMR) in mammals as reached, for instance, during lactation, is due to a limited capacity for heat dissipation. Here, we experimentally tested whether heat dissipation limitation (HDL) also constrains energy turnover in lactating European hares. Experimentally, we made use of the fact that hares nurse their young only once per day, which allowed us to keep females and young either at the same or at different ambient temperatures. During the last lactation week (week 4) females kept at thermoneutrality (22 degrees C), irrespective of the cold load of their young, had significantly lower rates of metabolisable energy intake (MEI) than cold-exposed mothers (5 degrees C), as predicted by the HDL hypothesis. However, in week 2 of lactation females at thermoneutrality rearing cold-exposed young were able to increase MEI to levels indistinguishable from those of cold-exposed females. Thus, even at thermoneutral temperature females reached maximum rates of energy turnover, which was inconsistent with the HDL hypothesis. We conclude that SusMR in lactating European hares typically results not from physiological constraints but from an active restriction of their energy turnover in order to maximise lifetime reproductive success.

Foraging in a heterogeneous environment—An experimental study of the trade-off between intake rate and diet quality

Among the factors determining the choice of feeding sites by herbivores, the rate of intake of net energy and nutrients is a major one. For grazers, patches of tall grasses are ingested faster, but are digested less fully because of their high fibre contents; conversely, short grass is highly digestible but allows only low intake rates. Herbivores therefore face a trade-off between the quantity and the quality of their food. Little empirical information is available to test whether optimisation models of patch selection are applicable to horses. An experiment was therefore designed where the trade-off between sward height and quality was explored to test explanatory models based on rates of nutrient acquisition (digestible dry matter, energy and/or protein intake rates). Three groups of two 2-year-old saddle horses were grazed on pasture managed to produce three swards differing in both height and quality (vegetative to reproductive stages). They were offered binary choices in a Latin-square design to assess preferences; daily intake was measured to determine the consequences of their choices. Instantaneous intake rates (IIRs) were determined from bite rates at pasture, and bite mass estimated using trays indoors. The taller sward matured during the experiment, so the quality differences between swards increased. The horses selected the taller sward in the first period, and the shorter alternatives in the following ones. The rates of digestible dry matter (DM) and net energy intake were always higher on the tall swards; digestible protein was the best predictor of the horses’ choices. Patch selection thus depended on the nutritional context: when digestible protein was not limiting, the horses selected patches where food was ingested faster, and when protein supplies declined, they maximised their protein intake rate. Preferences were however partial: as the shorter swards allowed higher rates of digestible protein intake but lower net energy than the taller swards, the horses may have been balancing their protein and energy intake by feeding on both swards; alternative explanations are discussed.

Foraging behaviour and diet of American Oystercatchers in a Patagonian intertidal area affected by nutrient loading

Eutrophication increases the biomass of opportunistic green macroalgae that covers intertidal zones, and macroalgal blooms may affect the intertidal invertebrate community and predation of invertebrates by shorebirds. In San Antonio Bay, Argentina, eutrophication from the discharge of wastewater from a coastal town produces periodic macroalgal blooms. Our aim was to assess if macroalgal blooms affect the foraging behaviour and diet of the American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus). A macroalgal transplant experiment was performed in order to evaluate how epifaunal species respond to a macroalgal canopy. The availability of prey for Oystercatchers, and their foraging behaviour and diet, were analysed in two paired channels with different nutrient loadings. Oystercatchers generally ate the most profitable prey and avoided prey with a profitability value lower than the mean rate of energy intake. During the macroalgal blooms, Oystercatchers avoided two prey species with high profitability values, shifting their foraging strategy and feeding onto a suboptimal prey but with a high encounter rate. Our results suggest that nutrient loadings and the macroalgal blooms that they generate have effects on the diet and foraging behaviour of Oystercatchers, which results in an increase of the average rate of energy intake of Oystercatchers foraging along the channel subject to a macroalgal bloom.

Foraging decisions of bison for rapid energy gains can explain the relative risk to neighboring plants in complex swards

Herbivores commonly base their foraging decisions not only on the intrinsic characteristics of plants, but also on the attributes of neighboring species. Although herbivores commonly orient their food choices toward the maximization of energy intake, the impact of such choices on neighboring plants remains largely unexplored. We evaluated whether foraging decisions by herbivores aiming at a rapid intake of digestible energy could explain multiple neighboring effects in complex swards. Specifically, we assessed how spatial patterns of occurrence of Carex atherodes, a highly profitable sedge species, could control the risk of bison (Bison bison) herbivory for seven other plant species. The foraging behavior of 70 free-ranging bison was evaluated in their natural environment during summer, and then related to plant characteristics. We used this information to estimate the instantaneous intake rate of digestible energy at individual feeding stations. We found that neighbor contrast defense and associational susceptibility can both be explained by simple foraging rules of energy maximization. Energy gains were higher when C. atherodes was consumed while avoiding the species for which we detected neighbor contrast defense. The lower intake rate associated with their consumption was due to an increase in handling time caused by their small size relative to C. atherodes. Bison also had higher energy gains by consuming instead of avoiding the plant species that experienced associational susceptibility. Because most of these plants were at least as tall as C. atherodes, their presence increased the heterogeneity of the grazed stratum. Avoiding their consumption increased handling time thereby reducing the instantaneous rate of energy intake. Overall, we found that bison adjust their fine-scale foraging decisions to vertical and horizontal sward structures in a way that maximizes their energy intake rate. Energy maximization principles thus provide a valuable framework to evaluate a broad-range of neighboring effects for prey faced with generalist consumers.

Selection of Feeding Areas by Senegal Kingfishers Halcyon senegalensis

Studies of ‘optimal foraging’ in birds have concentrated on species which search actively. This paper describes the organization of foraging behaviour under field conditions of a tropical ‘sit-and-wait’ predator, based on the choice of trees as vantage points. Preferences shown for different trees did not appear to maximize the birds' rate of capture of prey items, but rates of energy intake were not measured. However, it is possible that selection for ‘optimal’ behaviour in this species is not so strong as in temperate species which search actively.

When foraging becomes unprofitable: energetics of diving in tidal currents by common eiders wintering in the Arctic

A variety of ecological, physiological and environmental factors influence the energy budgets of diving animals. For common eiders Somateria mollissima sedentaria wintering in sea ice habitats in the Canadian Arctic, time and energy costs of diving increase exponentially with tidal cur- rent speed. Here we use literature estimates of diving energetics and underwater dive data to quan- titatively model net energy gain per dive cycle as a function of current speed. The model indicates a strong non-linear decrease in the profitability of diving with increasing currents, predicting that net energy gain per dive cycle will reach zero and become unprofitable at 1.21 m s -1 (at 11.3 m depth using baseline parameters from our study). As currents increase travel time, foraging time at the bot- tom decreases non-linearly, reaching a point where intake is inadequate to balance increasing div- ing and surface swimming costs. Sensitivity analysis indicates that this threshold is robust over a range of energy expenditure rates and is influenced most by energy intake rate, emphasising the importance of ecological factors such as prey abundance and quality. Eiders stop foraging and rest on the ice well below this threshold in weaker current regimes (~0.8 m s -1 ), at about the point when prof- itability begins to decelerate. Behavioural time series of diving under constraints of strong tidal cur- rent regimes indicate that these eiders do occasionally dive in currents up to ~1.2 m s -1 , providing support for the energetic model. Eiders did not dive in faster currents, which could also be influenced by a physiological limit to swimming speed. We conclude that ocean currents can cause a non-linear decrease in net energy balance and are therefore an important and understudied consideration for diving animals. Many functional aspects of diving (e.g. locomotor costs or convective heat loss) have non-linear characteristics; these diminishing returns can be expected to play an important role in the dynamics of behavioural routines and the ability of organisms to respond to environmental variation.

Insights from the eco-physiological book of records: Bewick's swans outperform the canonical intake-maximizing vertebrate

During periods of high energy demand an animal may be constrained by a physiological maximum to its energy intake rate. Predictions by allometric equations describing this maximum for endotherms were significantly surpassed during a few recent laboratory experiments on birds and mammals, being given access to food 24 h day−1. How relevant this is in the field remains to be assessed. We predicted that Bewick's swans Cygnus columbianus bewickii might surpass this maximum during stopover on their migration. We determined intake rate by measuring initial and final biomass density, and dividing the biomass difference by the feeding time required to reach this difference. This feeding time was given by the functional response. After conversion to daily energy intake rates, these exceeded the previously assumed maximum on two of the three stopover sites studied. The exception was a stopover site where daily foraging time was limited by the tidal cycle. Our study confirms that intake rates may exceed the formerly generally supposed maximum under natural conditions when foraging is possible day and night.

Bioenergetic assessment of habitat quality for stream-dwelling cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri) with implications for climate change and nutrient supplementation

We used a bioenergetic model to determine if cutthroat trout ( Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri ) abundance was related to net energy intake rates (NEI) and the proportion of suitable habitat and to evaluate potential changes in habitat quality due to climate change and stream fertilization efforts. We conducted monthly sampling of cutthroat trout, invertebrate drift, and physical habitat features in pool and riffle habitats. Fish in this study selected foraging positions that enabled them to maximize NEI, and most fish were capable of sustaining high growth rates from July to September. Mean NEI and the proportion of suitable habitat at sites were greater in pools relative to riffle habitats and declined from July to October, primarily due to a decline in temperature over the four months. Cutthroat trout biomass was significantly related to NEI and the proportion of suitable habitat at a site. Model simulations indicated that climate change might reduce habitat quality for small-bodied trout, while extending the growing season for larger fish. Increased food abundance provided only marginal changes to model outcomes, whereas reductions in food significantly reduced habitat quality.

Limits to sustained energy intake. XI. A test of the heat dissipation limitation hypothesis in lactating Brandt's voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii)

The maximum rate of sustained energy intake (SusEI) may limit reproductive effort, thermoregulatory capability and other aspects of an animal's energy expenditure. Consequently, factors that limit SusEI are of interest. The ;heat dissipation limitation hypothesis' suggests that maximum SusEI during lactation is limited by the capacity to dissipate body heat generated as a by-product of processing food and producing milk. In the present study, we tested the heat dissipation limitation hypothesis in lactating Brandt's voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii). Female voles were mated and pregnant at 21(+/-1) degrees C. A random sample of animals was transferred into a hot room 30(+/-1) degrees C on the day of parturition. The energy intake of lactating voles at 30 degrees C was always lower than that at 21 degrees C. At peak lactation food intake was 3.3 g day(-1) lower at 30 degrees C than at 21 degrees C. There was no significant difference in digestibility. With similar mean litter sizes (7.26+/-0.46 pups at 21 degrees C and 7.78+/-0.39 pups at 30 degrees C at the beginning of parturition, 6.83+/-0.51 pups at 21 degrees C and 7.73+/-0.50 pups at 30 degrees C at weaning), the milk energy output of mothers, evaluated from the difference between metabolizable energy intake and daily energy expenditure measured by doubly labelled water, at 30 degrees C was 23.3 kJ day(-1) lower than that at 21 degrees C on days 14-16 of lactation. As for reproductive performance, there was a difference in the response to the higher temperature between mothers raising large and those raising small litters. For small litters (<7) there was no significant change in litter mass, but for large litters (<or=7) there was a significant decrease at the higher temperature. On average, in larger litters the pups were 15.5 g heavier on day 12 of lactation when raised at 21 degrees C. Our data from Brandt's voles support the suggestion that SusEI at peak lactation is limited by heat dissipation capacity, particularly for those voles raising large litters. In smaller litters the peripheral limitation hypothesis may be more relevant. The importance of heat dissipation limits in species raising exclusively small litters needs to be investigated.

Can an adequate energy intake be able to reverse the negative nitrogen balance in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients?

Purpose Adequate energy provision and nitrogen losses prevention of critically ill patients are essentials for treatment and recovery. The aims of this study were to evaluate energy expenditure (EE) and nitrogen balance (NB) of critically ill patients, to classify adequacy of energy intake (EI), and to verify adequacy of EI capacity to reverse the negative NB. Methods Seventeen patients from an intensive care unit were evaluated within a 24-hour period. Indirect calorimetry was performed to calculate patient's EE and Kjeldhal for urinary nitrogen analysis. The total EI and protein intake were calculated from the standard parenteral and enteral nutrition infused. Underfeeding was characterized as EI 90% or less and overfeeding as 110% or greater of EE. The adequacy of the EI (EI EE −1 × 100) and the NB were estimated and associated with each other by Spearman coefficient. Results The mean EE was 1515 ± 268 kcal d −1, and most of the patients (11/14) presented a negative NB (−8.2 ± 4.7 g.d −1). A high rate (53%) of inadequate energy intake was found, and a positive correlation between EI EE −1 and NB was observed ( r = 0.670; P = .007). Conclusion The results show a high rate of inadequate EI and negative NB, and equilibrium between EI and EE may improve NB. Indirect calorimetry can be used to adjust the energy requirements in the critically ill patients.