MILITARY PHARMACY AND MEDICINE

© Military Pharmacy and Medicine • 2012 • 4 • 57 – 60Jerzy Bertrandt at al.: Energy expenditure as the basis for determination …PhysiologyEnergy expenditure as the basis for determinationof nutritional demand in soldiersJerzy Bertrandt 1 , Anna Kłos 1 , Bartosz Bertrandt 21Department of Hygiene and Physiology, Military Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Warsaw, Poland.2Military Research and Deployment Center for Food Services, Warsaw, Poland.Author’s address:Jerzy Bertrandt, Military Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Kozielska 4, 01-163 Warsaw, Poland;phone: (+48) 22 685 31 34, 601 853 117, e–mail: J.Bertrandt@wihe.waw.pl.Received: 2012.10.29 • Accepted: 2012.11.22 • Published: 2012.12.08Summary:The study summarizes the history of studies to determine the nutritional demand in soldiers of differentarmies, both in Poland and worldwide. Standard energy values of food rations as used for planning andproviding nutrition to soldiers over the last century were presented.Key words: energy expenditure, food rations, military service .IntroductionGood nutrition is one of the fundamental factorsallowing soldiers to maintain high physicalfitness and good mental condition. Such conditionsmay only be achieved by proper nutritionthat covers all nutritional demands of the body.The main principle of rational nutrition is that thefood should deliver appropriate amount of energyto match the energy expenditure. In nutrition,the energy expenditure values are the measureof calorific demand of human body that may becovered only by the food intake. Thus, the knowledgeof daily energy loss is the basis for determinationof energy values of nutritional standardsfor populations homogenous in terms of gender,age, body weight and height, performing similarworks and living in similar conditions.The question of daily energy expenditure, energyvalue of food and, in consequence, the energybalance, are of particular importance in thehttp://military.isl-journals.comarmy. Knowledge of the physical burden associatedwith soldiers’ training, type of military unitand the specificity of service should be an essentialelement in nutrition planning which has tocover the energy demand and provide the bodywith all required nutrients in appropriate quantitiesand ratios.History of the studies ofenergy demand in soldiersHistory of determination of nutritional demandsand in particular the energy demand in soldiersdates back to the 19th century. Soldiers’ nutritionwas usually the subject of interest for militaryhealthcare services, as it directly affected thesoldier’s health and the efficacy of their action.Hence, in 1863, responsibility for nutrition in theUS Army was bestowed by law to the militaryhealthcare service [1]. The regulations were verifiedin 1877 and have remained in force ever since,including appropriate amendments. According57