The term that describes the amount of energy needed by the body for maintenance of life while at rest is?

Answer 1

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the term that describes the rate at which your body burns calories just to remain alive while resting.

Variables include your:

1. Weight - it takes more work to maintain a large body than a small one, so large people burn more calories per hour

2. Sex - it takes more energy to maintain lean muscle than fat. The body of a typical women has a larger percent of fat (female breasts contain a lot of fatty tissue as do their wider hipped buttocks), so in general men burn more calories per hour. This is why you will often see RDA nutrition labels given for a 2,000 calorie diet and a 2,500 calories diet. The 2,000 calorie diet is for women and the 2,500 calorie diet is for men. Naturally, we are talking about the "typical man and woman" here. A fatty male couch potato may burn calories slower than a lean female track star. Remember - the real issue is lean muscle vs. fat, not truly gender.

3. Age - People tend to lose muscle mass as they age, which is replace with body fat. Therefore, younger people tend to burn calories faster than older people. As with sex, the real issue is lean muscle vs. fat, not age - so there are exceptions.

4. Growth - Rapidly growing children burn calories faster by growing than a full height adult. Who has not know a growing boy who could eat everything in the kitchen? Likewise, a pregnant woman with a rapidly growing fetus with burn more calories per hour than she did before she was pregnant.

5. Temperature - your body has an internal thermostat that will try to keep you at a comfortable temperature. If you are really hot or really cold, your body will "work" to make your feel more comfortable. This "work" burns calories.

6. Fever and stress - you body does not like these things any more than being hot or cold. Your body will "work" to relieve these conditions, causing your body to burn more calories.