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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
Hunter-gatherer energetics and human obesity
PLoS ONE, Volume 7, No. 7, Article e40503, Year 2012
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Description
Western lifestyles differ markedly from those of our hunter-gatherer ancestors, and these differences in diet and activity level are often implicated in the global obesity pandemic. However, few physiological data for hunter-gatherer populations are available to test these models of obesity. In this study, we used the doubly-labeled water method to measure total daily energy expenditure (kCal/day) in Hadza hunter-gatherers to test whether foragers expend more energy each day than their Western counterparts. As expected, physical activity level, PAL, was greater among Hadza foragers than among Westerners. Nonetheless, average daily energy expenditure of traditional Hadza foragers was no different than that of Westerners after controlling for body size. The metabolic cost of walking (kcal kg-1 m-1) and resting (kcal kg-1 s-1) were also similar among Hadza and Western groups. The similarity in metabolic rates across a broad range of cultures challenges current models of obesity suggesting that Western lifestyles lead to decreased energy expenditure. We hypothesize that human daily energy expenditure may be an evolved physiological trait largely independent of cultural differences. © 2012 Pontzer et al.
Available Materials
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3405064/bin/pone.0040503.s001.tif
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3405064/bin/pone.0040503.s002.tif
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3405064/bin/pone.0040503.s003.tif
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3405064/bin/pone.0040503.s004.pdf
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3405064/bin/pone.0040503.s005.pdf
Authors & Co-Authors
Pontzer, Herman
United States, New York
Hunter College
United States, New York
New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology
Raichlen, David A.
United States, Tucson
The University of Arizona
Wood, Brian M.
United States, New Haven
Yale University
Mabulla, Audax Z.P.
Tanzania, Dar es Salaam
University of Dar es Salaam
Racette, Susan B.
United States, St. Louis
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
Marlowe, Frank W.
United Kingdom, Cambridge
University of Cambridge
Statistics
Citations: 271
Authors: 6
Affiliations: 7
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1371/journal.pone.0040503
e-ISSN:
19326203
Research Areas
Environmental
Noncommunicable Diseases