Overweight causes

Altered basal metabolic rate (BMR)

Basal metabolic rate is the amount of energy that the body of a relaxed lying person needs 12 hours after the last food intake at a constant room temperature of 20 degrees per day. This amount of energy is necessary for the organs to work, the metabolism to function and for the body temperature to be maintained. The basal metabolic rate depends on: The following rule of thumb is used for calculation: Basal metabolic rate women (in kcal) = 0.9 x body weight in kg x 24 Basal metabolic rate men (in kcal) = 1.0 x body weight x 24 men have a higher basal metabolic rate than women because they have more muscle mass and muscle cells consume more energy than fat tissue even when resting.

Women naturally have less muscle mass, but more fat tissue than men. Adolescents have a higher basal metabolic rate during the growth phase than adults. Women have a higher basal metabolic rate during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. With increasing age, the basal metabolic rate decreases and the probability of being overweight increases.

  • Gender
  • Age
  • Size and
  • Weight.

Genetically determined (inherited) basal metabolic rate

The amount of the basic turnover is inherited. In 1986, studies showed that the variance of the Basal Metabolic Rate between families was 4 times higher than within a family. This is explained by the different muscle fiber composition. This is one reason why people increase at different speeds and with different amounts of energy. A low, inherited basal metabolic rate can lead to overweight (obesity).

Thermogenesis

This is the additional consumption of energy by heat-producing factors such as food intake (“thermic effect of food”) and digestion. 10 % of the basal metabolic rate can be added for this effect. The Basal Metabolic Rate always refers to the person in complete rest. The daily energy consumption is composed of

  • Basal Metabolic Rate
  • Thermogenesis and the
  • Performance conversion.