An augmented food strategy leads to complete energy compensation during a 15‐day military training expedition in the cold

• Published in: Physiological Reports
• Main Authors: Charlot, Keyne, Chapelot, Didier, Siracusa, Julien, Lavoué, Chloé, Colin, Philippe, Oustric, Pauline, Thivel, David, Finlayson, Graham, Bourrilhon, Cyprien
• Other Authors: Institut de Recherche Biomédicale des Armées Brétigny-sur-Orge (IRBA), Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Statistics, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers CNAM (CNAM), HESAM Université - Communauté d'universités et d'établissements Hautes écoles Sorbonne Arts et métiers université (HESAM)-HESAM Université - Communauté d'universités et d'établissements Hautes écoles Sorbonne Arts et métiers université (HESAM)-Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (USPC)-Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Institut Toulousain des Maladies Infectieuses et Inflammatoires (Infinity), Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Leeds, Laboratoire des Adaptations Métaboliques à l'Exercice en Conditions Physiologiques et Pathologiques (AME2P), Université Clermont Auvergne 2017-2020 (UCA 2017-2020 )-UFR Sciences et Techniques des Activités Physiques et Sportives - Clermont-Auvergne (UFR STAPS - UCA), Université Clermont Auvergne 2017-2020 (UCA 2017-2020 )-Université Clermont Auvergne 2017-2020 (UCA 2017-2020 )
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2021
• Subjects: arctic; energy compensation; energy deficiency; food preferences; military training; rations; [SDV.AEN]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Food and Nutrition; [SDV.MHEP]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Human health and pathology; Arctic; Human health
• Online Access: https://uca.hal.science/hal-03312965; https://doi.org/10.14814/phy2.14591

International audience Soldiers on military expeditions usually fail to compensate for the increase in energy expenditure, with potential deleterious consequences. We therefore analyzed the characteristics of energy compensation in 12 male soldiers, during a 15-day expedition in the cold, while alleviating some of the contextual limitations of food intake (~20-MJ daily bags of easy-to-use, highly palatable and familiar foods with multiple and long breaks allowed during the day). Body and fat mass losses were low and moderate, respectively (−1.13 ± 1.42% and −19.5 ± 15.6%, respectively, p < .021). Mean energy intake (EI) was high (~16.3 MJ) and increased at each third of the expedition (15.3 ± 2.1, 16.1 ± 2.1, and 17.6 ± 2.0 for D1–5, D6–10 and D11–15, respectively, p < .012). This resulted in reaching a neutral energy balance as soon as the D6 to 10 period and reaching normal energy availability during D11 to 15. Participants only increased their EI during the mid-day (10:00–14:00) period (p = .002) whereas hunger and thirst only increased in the morning, with higher scores during D11–15 than D1–5 (p < .009). Last, the reward value of sweet foods was also higher during D11–15 than during D1–5 (p = .026). The changes in body mass were positively associated with EI (r = 0.598, p = .040) and carbohydrate intake (r = 0.622, p = .031). This study indicates that complete energy compensation can be reached in challenging field conditions when food intake is facilitated, offering some guidelines to limit energy deficit during operational missions.