The Impact of Moderate Physical Activity on the Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) in Children with Asthma

Abstract

Objective – The objective was to assess whether a two week program of a moderate physical activity affects the resting metabolic rate (RMR) in a group of children with well-controlled asthma.

Materials and methods - The study included 26 children (14 boys and 12 girls) aged 7-15 years, with well controlled asthma, who participated in Asthma Camp for a period of two weeks, where they had moderate physical activity on a daily basis. Body mass, height and RMR of the participants were measured on the first and last day of the Camp. The RMR assessment was based on a gas exchange measurement.

Results – A statistically significant difference (P<0.05) between the two measurements was found for oxygen uptake (VO₂), expired oxygen content (FeO₂), RMR and % predicted Harris-Benedict, while there was no statistically significant difference for the respiratory minute ventilation, respiratory frequency and heart rate. Average RMR increased from 1244 kcal · day^-1 to 1535 kcal · day^-1 .

Conclusion – Although most of the participants with asthma are in normal body weight range, there is still a significant proportion of overweight/obese participants. Average RMR of children with asthma was lower than expected by the HarrisBenedict equation. Two weeks of structured controlled moderate physical activity led to a significant increase in average RMR in both genders of children with asthma, reaching values higher than the Harris-Benedict estimation. Thereby, regular moderate physical activity should be an essential part of asthma treatment, especially in obese patients, since obesity is one of the most common co-morbidities in asthma.