er on Pregnancy and
Lactation).
~For the Child.~--The factors influencing the food requirements are
different, to a certain extent, from those of the adult. The main
difference lies in the fact that the adult needs food only for the
maintenance and repair of the body, while the child must have food,
not only to cover its maintenance requirements, but to support the
growth and development which should be continuous from birth to
maturity. Resistance, too, must be developed during this period in
order to safeguard the child through life.
The rate of metabolism in the infant is greater than at any other
period of life, consequently, even if a child were one-third the
weight of its parent, it would inevitably cease to grow and would
become malnourished, if its food requirements were reckoned at only
one-third that of the parent.
~Adjusting the Food Requirements.~--Taking these factors as guides for
estimating the food requirements of man, it is evident that no hard
and fast law can be laid down to cover all, that each individual must
adjust the food intake according to the weight and activity of the
body. Sherman has arranged the following table showing the energy
expenditures per hour for the average man (154 pounds), per pound of
body weight (these are approximate averages only).
TABLE[21]
=====================================================================
Sleeping quietly 60-70 calories per hour
Awake, lying still 70-85 calories per hour
Sitting at rest 100 calories per hour
Standing at rest 115 calories per hour
Tailoring 135 calories per hour
Typewriting rapidly 140 calories per hour
"Light exercise" (stationary bicycle) 170 calories per hour
Shoemaking 180 calories per hour
Walking slowly (about 2-1/4 miles an hour) 200 calories per hour
Carpentry or metal work 240 calories per hour
"Active exercise" (stationary bicycle) 290 calories per hour
Walking briskly (about 3-3/4 miles an hour) 300 calories per hour
Stone working 400 calories per hour
Severe exercise, such as sawing wood 450 calories per hour
Running (about 5-1/2 miles an hour) 500 calories per hour
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