Towards representative energy data: the Machiguenga study

Representative energy data for a human population can be produced by combining randomly sampled time allocation observations with activity-specific energy expenditure measurements. Research to produce representative energy data for adults of a population of Machiguenga Indians has recently been conducted in lowland, southeastern Peru. Marked contrast was found between the sexes for average married adults in energy expended on an average day. Men spent about 3,200 kcals and women, about 1,925; ratio: 1.66 to 1. In general, men tended to work at somewhat more energetic activities and for longer periods than did women. In addition to sex-role-related task differences were contrasts in uses of technological items and in respective work settings. These representative behavior data permit direct estimates of population-level energy requirements for average days, seasons, or for 1 year.