Resting energy expenditure in reduced-obese subjects in the National Weight Control Registry

Weight loss in obese subjects is associated with a reduction in resting metabolic rate (RMR). Whether the reduction can be explained solely by a reduction in lean body mass remains controversial.

Our objective was to determine whether the reduction in RMR after weight loss was proportional to the decrease in lean mass alone or was greater than could be explained by body composition.

We measured the RMR, fasting respiratory quotient (RQ), and body composition in 40 reduced-obese subjects [ie, 7 men and 33 women who had lost > or = 13.6 kg (30 lb) and maintained the loss for > or = 1 y] enrolled in the National Weight Control Registry and 46 weight-matched control subjects (9 men, 37 women).

A stepwise multiple regression found lean mass, fat mass, age, and sex to be the best predictors of RMR in both groups. After adjusting RMR for these variables, we found no significant difference in RMR (5926 +/- 106 and 6015 +/- 104 kJ/d) between the 2 groups (P = 0.35). When we adjusted fasting RQ for percentage body fat and age, the reduced-obese group had a slightly higher (0.807 +/- 0.006) RQ than the control group (0.791 +/- 0.005, P = 0.05). This may have been due to the consumption of a diet lower in fat or to a reduced capacity for fat oxidation in the reduced-obese group.

These results show that in at least some reduced-obese individuals there does not seem to be a permanent obligatory reduction in RMR beyond the expected reduction for a reduced lean mass.