BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and daily calorie intake

BMR (BASAL METABOLIC RATE) and daily calorie intake

BMR (otherwise commonly known as Basal Metabolic rate) spells out the minimum required calorie intake that would be necessary for sustenance of our normal body functions. We all need this minimum calorie into our body so that our internal processes and functions could work adequately. As a rule of thumb, a healthy a body must be fed approximately 70% of the body’s calories. Inside our body, a hormone called thyroxin is responsible to regulate these calories. Such thyroxin is manufactured by the thyroid gland and it determines our metabolic rate.

The Thyroid gland excretes Thyroxin that has a major influence on body weight, muscle strength, blood sugar and heart beat rate. It is common for BMR to decrease as part of the aging process. Certain body functions that are affected by basal metabolic rate are our blood circulation, respiration and normal body temperature.

Basal metabolic rate in human can increase for people who are more efficient in burning up the calories. Put it another way, higher metabolic rate equates higher calorie absorption in the body. A number of factors can contribute to higher BMR, for example lean body tissues, efficient calorie intake and vigorous exercise regime. The higher reading of BMR also means that the human body is more adept at burning excessive fats and reducing weight effectively. The benefits derived from these two enhanced activities are that we are now at a lower risk of diabetes problems, heart disease, strokes as well as heart attacks.

However we can influence the Basal Metabolic Rate count by simply cutting down our calorie intake, which would also result in extra weight loss. For maximum effect, one has to reduce calorie intake to a level that is less than the BMR rate. Another point to take note of is that this intake should not be lowered to such extent that it gets to the point of starvation. Daily intake of 1200 calories can be used as a guideline as the minimum calorie intake to sustain a healthy body.

As human, we have to consume food as it provides us energy alongside nutrients, which are so critical for up-keeping of optimal body system. Calories represent the source of energy we find in our food. They are kind of abstract but they do serve the useful purpose to give us the measurement units for the energy in the food. All our food stuff contains calories, which are, in turn, determines how our body weighs. Fundamentally calories can be broken down according to four types of food components i.e. proteins, alcohol, carbohydrates and fats. Fats stand out among the four as it is considered to store double the amount of calories, when it is compared across the other food components.

The concept is no different from our cars, we need food to fill our body with calories in the same way cars need gas. Food inside our stomach can be equated with calorie being filled into the human body system. This supply the energy to allow us to carry out our daily activities and it is also so critical to maintain our internal processes for optimum functioning. However, human beings sometimes may opt for a certain food component over the other, either through cultural influence or personal choice. Hence an individual may pick proteins over carbohydrates, or vice versa, it thus becomes more imperative to use calorie count as the measurement to keep track of the amount of food our body system needs.

Take note that excessive consumption of calorie would result in the unused calories into fats. Since everybody has his or her own Basal metabolic rate that directly determines the amount of calories to be taken, so it makes sense to pay attention to it so that your body is able to perform at optimal level.