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Increased resting energy expenditure in childhood asthma: does this contribute towards growth failure?
S R Zeitlin1, S Bond, S Wootton
1Department of Child Health, Southampton General Hospital.
Insights
Children with asthma expend 14% more energy at rest than healthy children, suggesting a potential link between asthma and higher energy needs. Further research is needed to understand the causes of this increased energy expenditure in pediatric asthma patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Metabolic Research
Background:
- Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition affecting children worldwide.
- Growth disorders in children with asthma are a concern for clinicians.
- The relationship between asthma, energy expenditure, and nutritional intake requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between asthma in children and increased resting energy expenditure.
- To determine if inadequate energy intake is associated with asthma in pediatric populations.
- To explore potential links between asthma severity and energy balance parameters.
Main Methods:
- A study involving 34 children with perennial asthma symptoms and a matched control group.
- Seven-day weighed food intake records were collected from all participants.
- Basal metabolic rate was measured using indirect calorimetry (ventilated hood technique).
- Asthmatic children maintained 28-day records of peak expiratory flow rates, symptoms, and medication.
Main Results:
- Asthmatic children exhibited significantly higher resting energy expenditure (14% more) compared to controls.
- No correlation was found between height or height standard deviation score and energy balance parameters.
- Increased energy expenditure in asthmatic children was observed irrespective of growth parameters.
Conclusions:
- Children with perennial asthma demonstrate elevated resting energy expenditure compared to healthy peers.
- The findings suggest that increased energy demands may be a factor in pediatric asthma.
- The precise causes for heightened energy expenditure in asthmatic children remain speculative and warrant further research.
Abstract:
In order to determine whether or not there was a relationship between disorders of growth in children suffering from asthma and either increased resting energy expenditure or inadequate energy intake, a group of 34 children suffering from perennial symptoms were studied. A control group matched with the asthmatic children for sex and fat free mass were similarly studied. The children kept seven day records of weighed food intake. Basal metabolic rate was measured on one occasion in the fasted state by means of indirect calorimetry using the ventilated hood technique. The asthmatic children kept a 28 day record of peak expiratory flow rates, asthma symptoms, and medication usage. The asthmatic children expended significantly more energy at rest than their matched controls in absolute terms (14%). There was no correlation between height or height SD score and any parameter of energy balance. The causes of these finding are as yet speculative.