The following table is derived from data produced by Becker and Hamalainen of the University of Helsingfors, Finland, from actual experiment with individuals alternately resting and working at their respective trades while in the “respiration calorimeter.”
| Occupation | Age | Height Ft.–Ins. | Wgt. Lbs. | During Rest | During Work | Total Calories per Day (8 Hrs Work, 16 Hrs. Rest) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories per Hour | Calories per Hour per Lb. of Body Weight | Calories per Hour | |||||
| MEN | |||||||
| Shoemaker | 56 | 5–0 | 145 | 73 | .50 | 172 | 2544 |
| Shoemaker | 30 | 5–8 | 143 | 87 | .60 | 171 | 2760 |
| Tailor | 39 | 5–5 | 141 | 72 | .50 | 124 | 2144 |
| Tailor | 46 | 5–10½ | 161 | 102 | .63 | 135 | 2712 |
| Bookbinder | 19 | 6–0 | 150 | 87 | .58 | 164 | 2704 |
| Bookbinder | 23 | 5–4½ | 143 | 85 | .59 | 163 | 2664 |
| Metalworker | 34 | 5–4 | 139 | 81 | .58 | 216 | 3024 |
| Metalworker | 27 | 5–5 | 130 | 99 | .76 | 219 | 3336 |
| Painter | 25 | 5–11 | 154 | 104 | .67 | 231 | 3512 |
| Painter | 27 | 5–8 | 147 | 111 | .79 | 230 | 3616 |
| Joiner | 42 | 5–7 | 154 | 81 | .50 | 204 | 2928 |
| Joiner | 24 | 5–5½ | 141 | 85 | .60 | 244 | 3312 |
| Stone-worker | 27 | 5–11 | 156 | 90 | .57 | 408 | 4704 |
| Stone-worker | 22 | 5–8 | 141 | 85 | .60 | 366 | 4288 |
| Sawyer | 42 | 5–5 | 167 | 86 | .50 | 501 | 5384 |
| Sawyer | 43 | 5–5 | 143 | 84 | .59 | 451 | 4952 |
| WOMEN | |||||||
| Hand-sewer | 53 | 5–3 | 139 | 75 | .54 | 83 | 1864 |
| Hand-sewer | 35 | 5–6 | 143 | 64 | .45 | 88 | 1728 |
| Machine-sewer | 53 | 5–3 | 139 | 75 | .54 | 103 | 2024 |
| Machine-sewer | 19 | 5–3 | 110 | 64 | .58 | 119 | 1976 |
| Wash-woman | 43 | 5–3 | 125 | 75 | .60 | 285 | 3480 |
| Wash-woman | 19 | 5–3 | 110 | 64 | .58 | 186 | 2512 |
| Waitress | 43 | 5–3 | 125 | 75 | .60 | 228 | 3024 |
| Waitress | 19 | 5–3 | 110 | 64 | .58 | 143 | 2168 |
| Bookbinder | 22 | 5–4 | 105 | 70 | .65 | 98 | 1904 |
| Bookbinder | 22 | 5–3 | 112 | 61 | .54 | 127 | 1992 |
For example, for sawyers (an active occupation), the heat production and consequent requirement in calories worked out as follows:
| During rest 84 calories × 16 h. | 1344 |
| During work 451 calories × 8 h. | 3608 |
| Total calories | 4952 |
The tailor (sedentary occupation) showed the following heat production and calorific requirement:
| 72 calories × 16 h. | 1152 |
| 124 calories × 8 h. | 992 |
| Total calories | 2144 |
These figures show the wide variation in food requirements according to age, weight and occupation.
Basal Metabolism
Francis G. Benedict and his co-workers at the Nutrition Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, and Prof. Graham Lusk of Cornell University, have also made a large number of experiments to ascertain what is termed the basal metabolism or heat production of the body at perfect rest, and also that under varying degrees of activity. The results are closely in agreement with the above.
Benedict has lately produced evidence to show that the basal metabolism, or heat production, at rest is not governed entirely by such factors as body weight and body surface, but by the amount and activity of the active protoplasmic cells of the body—the cells that compose the organs and muscles and blood. The condition of these cells when the measurements are taken (which may be influenced by age, sleep, previous muscular exercise and diet) materially affects the amount of heat production and the requirements in energy food. Such experiments show why a man must literally burn up his own body, if he takes in no fuel in the form of food. Benedict’s views also account for the higher energy requirement of men as compared to women, who, as a rule, have more fat and less muscular tissue than men.