INTRODUCTION: Baseline Energy Expenditure (BEE) is the amount of energy necessary to the human body to keep the normal physiological processes and homeostasis. Currently, the BEE is calculated from equations based on the North American and/or European population. OBJECTIVE: To compare the equations of Harris-Benedict, Food and Agriculture Organization and Institute of Medicine with the indirect calorimeter in men living in Goiânia. METHODS: Forty- four male volunteers, average age of 29.80, Standart Deviation - SD = 6.21 years, stature 1.79, SD = 0.06m, weight 77.79, SD = 8.49 kg, BMI 24.30, SD = 1.96 kg/m2, body fat 15.84, SD = 4.49%, waist circumference 80.48, SD = 5.89 cm, were evaluated. BEE was determined by direct gas analyses using the gas analyzer VO2000. RESULTS: There was significant difference (p < 0.05) for the BEE estimated by the Harris-Benedict (1824.66 ± 138.25 kcal/day) and Food and Agriculture Organization (1821.77, SD = 115.39 kcal/day) equations when compared to the BEE acquired by the indirect calorimeter (1709.81, SD = 329.75 kcal/day). The BEE estimated by the equation IOM/2005 (1791.81, SD = 329.74) did not present significant difference when compared to the measured BEE. CONCLUSION: The Food and Agriculture Organization and Harris-Benedict equations can overestimate the BEE of healthy young men with similar characteristics to those reported in this work.
BEE; indirect calorimetry; equations
