The identification of functional brown adipose tissue in human adults has intensified interest in exploiting thermogenic energy expenditure for the purpose of weight management. However, food intake and energy expenditure are tightly regulated and it is generally accepted that variation in one component results in compensatory changes in the other. In the context of weight loss, additional biol...

With numerous challenges hindering smallholders’ adoption of externally developed technologies, it is often argued that farmer innovation can play an essential role in rural livelihoods. Yet a rigorous assessment of the impact of farmer innovation is lacking. We address this issue by analyzing the effect of farmer innovation on household welfare, measured by income, consumption expenditure, and...

Using quadratic Engel curves with measurement errors, we identify the proportion of urban households in Ethiopia for whom food exhibits the characteristics of a luxury commodity. The threshold welfare level beyond which food ceases to be a luxury is found to lie between the 35 and 47 percentiles of the total expenditure distribution. This suggests that policy aimed at reducing food poverty shou...

BACKGROUND Aging is a process associated with physiological changes such as in body composition, energy expenditure and physical activity. Data on energy and nutrient intake adequacy among elderly is important for disease prevention, health maintenance and program development. METHODS This descriptive cross-sectional study was designed to determine the energy requirements and adequacy of ener...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Capsaicin and its nonpungent analog (capsinoids) are known to be food ingredients that increase energy expenditure and decrease body fat. This article reviews the role of brown adipose tissue (BAT) for the thermogenic effect of these compounds in humans and proposes the possibility of some other antiobesity food ingredients. RECENT FINDINGS A single oral ingestion of capsino...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of nutritional recovery with rice bran on energy balance, leptin and insulin levels. METHODS Weaned Wistar rats were fed on a 17% (Control - C) or 0.5% (Aproteic - A) protein diet for 12d. After this, rats were kept on a C diet (C) or recovered with control (Recovered Control - RC) or control plus recovered rice bran diet (Recovered Rice Bran - RRB). RESU...

Body weight is regulated by coordinating energy intake and energy expenditure. Transforming growth factor β (TGFβ)/bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling has been shown to regulate energy balance in lower organisms, but whether a similar pathway exists in mammals is unknown. We have previously demonstrated that BMP7 can regulate brown adipogenesis and energy expenditure. In the current stud...

Previous empirical literature has found a sharp decline in consumption during the first years of retirement, implying that individuals do not save enough for their retirement. This phenomenon is called the retirement consumption puzzle. We find no evidence of the retirement consumption puzzle using panel data from 1980 to 2000. Consumption is defined as nondurable expenditure, a more comprehens...

BACKGROUND Mild cold exposure increases energy expenditure and can influence energy balance, but at the same time it does not increase appetite and energy intake. OBJECTIVE To quantify dermal insulative cold response, we assessed thermal comfort and skin temperatures changes by infrared thermography. METHODS We exposed healthy volunteers to either a single episode of environmental mild cold...