A young woman consumes 1200 mL of O₂ during a six-minute, basal metabolic rate test period.What is her estimated basal metabolic rate

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The formula to calculate basal metabolic rate (BMR) is:
BMR (kcal/day) = (weight in kg) x 24. 
However, since the question provides us with the amount of oxygen consumed during a specific period of time, we need to adjust the formula. One way to do this is to convert the oxygen consumption to energy expenditure in kcal/hour, using the conversion factor of 4.825 kcal/L of O₂. 
So, 1200 mL of O₂ consumed in 6 minutes is equivalent to:
(1200 mL / 1000) x (4.825 kcal/L) x (60 min/6 min) = 28.98 kcal/hour. 
This is an estimate of the woman's BMR, assuming she was at rest during the test period. Therefore, the closest choice is B) 57.6 kcal/hour, which is twice the estimate because 24 hours make up a day.

A Young Woman Consumes 1200 ML of O₂ During a Six-Minute