# Schofield equation

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{{Short description|Equation for estimating daily calorie needs}}
The '''Schofield Equation''' is a method of estimating the [basal metabolic rate](/source/basal_metabolic_rate) (BMR) of adult men and women published in 1985.<ref name="pmid4044297">{{cite journal |author=Schofield WN |title=Predicting basal metabolic rate, new standards and review of previous work |journal=Human Nutrition: Clinical Nutrition |volume=39 Suppl 1 |pages=5–41 |date=1985 |pmid=4044297}}</ref>

This is the equation used by the [WHO](/source/World_Health_Organization) in their [technical report](/source/technical_report) series.<ref>World Health Organisation, Fao, and Unu. Energy and protein requirements. Geneva: WHO, Technical Report Series 724, 1985.</ref> The equation that is recommended to estimate BMR by the US [Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics](/source/Academy_of_Nutrition_and_Dietetics) is the [Mifflin-St. Jeor equation](/source/Basal_metabolic_rate).<ref>J Am Diet Assoc. 2009;109:330-346.</ref>

The equations for estimating [BMR](/source/Basal_metabolic_rate) in kJ/day (kilojoules per day) from the [body mass](/source/body_mass) W (kg) are:<ref name="fao">[http://www.fao.org/docrep/007/y5686e/y5686e07.htm Energy Requirements of Adults, Report of a Joint FAO/WHO/UNU Expert Consultation], (See table 5.2).</ref>

'''Men''':
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Age !! Equation (kJ/day) !! SEE
|-
| < 3 || 249 × W - 127 || 292
|-
| 3–10 || 95 × W + 2110 || 280
|-
| 10–18 || 74 × W + 2754 || 441
|-
| 18–30 || 63 × W + 2896 || 641
|-
| 30–60 || 48 × W + 3653 || 700
|-
| > 60 || 49 × W + 2459 || 686
|}

'''Women''':

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Age !! Equation (kJ/day) !! SEE
|-
| < 3 || 244 × W - 130 || 246
|-
| 3–10 || 85 × W + 2033 || 292
|-
| 10–18 || 56 × W + 2898 || 466
|-
| 18–30 || 62 × W + 2036 || 497
|-
| 30–60 || 34 × W + 3538 || 465
|-
| > 60 || 38 × W + 2755 || 451
|}

The equations for estimating BMR in kcal/day (kilocalories per day) from body mass (kg) are:

'''Men''':
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Age   !! Equation (kcal/day) !! SEE
|-
|   < 3 || 59.512 × W - 30.4 || 70
|-
|  3–10 || 22.706 × W + 504.3 || 67
|-
| 10–18 || 17.686 × W + 658.2 || 105
|-
| 18–30 || 15.057 × W + 692.2 || 153
|-
| 30–60 || 11.472 × W + 873.1 || 167
|-
|  > 60 || 11.711 × W + 587.7 || 164
|}

'''Women''':
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Age   !! Equation (kcal/day) !! SEE
|-
|   < 3 || 58.317 × W - 31.1 || 59
|-
|  3–10 || 20.315 × W + 485.9 || 70
|-
| 10–18 || 13.384 × W + 692.6 || 111
|-
| 18–30 || 14.818 × W + 486.6 || 119
|-
| 30–60 || 8.126 × W + 845.6 || 111
|-
|  > 60 || 9.082 × W + 658.5 || 108
|}

Key:

W = Body weight in kilograms

SEE = [Standard error of estimation](/source/Standard_error_of_estimation)

The raw figure obtained by the equation should be adjusted up or downwards, within the [confidence limit](/source/confidence_limit) suggested by the quoted estimation errors, and according to the following principles:

Subjects leaner and more muscular than usual require more energy than the average.
[Obese](/source/Obese) subjects require less.
Patients at the young end of the age range for a given equation require more energy.
Patients at the high end of the age range for a given equation require less energy.

Effects of age and body mass may cancel out: an obese 30-year-old or an athletic 60-year-old may need no adjustment from the raw figure.

== Physical activity levels ==

To find [total body energy expenditure](/source/body_energy_expenditure) (actual energy needed per day), the base metabolism must then be multiplied by a [physical activity level](/source/physical_activity_level) factor. These are as follows:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Activity !! Male !! Female !! Description
|-
| [Sedentary](/source/Sedentary_lifestyle) || 1.3|| 1.3|| Very physically inactive, inactive in both work and leisure.
|-
| Lightly active|| 1.6|| 1.5||Daily routine includes some walking, or intense exercise once or twice per week. Most students are in this category.
|-
| Moderate activity|| 1.7 || 1.6||Intense exercise lasting 20–45 minutes at least three time per week, or a job with a lot of walking, or a moderate intensity job.
|-
|Very active
|2.1
|1.9
|Intense exercise lasting at least an hour per day, or a heavy physical job, such as a [mail carrier](/source/mail_carrier) or an [athlete](/source/athlete) in training.
|-
|Extremely active
|2.4
|2.2
|Extremely active means an athlete on an unstoppable training schedule or a very demanding job, such as working in the [armed forces](/source/armed_forces) or shoveling coal.
|}

The FAO/WHO uses different PALs in their recommendations when recommending how to calculate TEE. See Table 5.3 of their working document. Energy Requirements of Adults, Report of a Joint FAO/WHO/UNU Expert Consultation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Human energy requirements |url=https://www.fao.org/3/y5686e/y5686e07.htm |access-date=2023-12-25 |website=www.fao.org}}</ref>

These equations were published in 1989 in the [dietary guidelines](/source/Dietary_Guidelines_for_Americans) and formed the [RDA](/source/Dietary_Reference_Intake)'s for a number of years. The activity factor used by the [USDA](/source/United_States_Department_of_Agriculture) was 1.6. In the UK, a lower activity factor of 1.4 is used. The equation has now been replaced by the [Institute of Medicine Equation](/source/Institute_of_Medicine_Equation) in September 2002 in the US, however is still currently used by the [FAO](/source/Food_and_Agriculture_Organization)/[WHO](/source/WHO)/[UNU](/source/United_Nations_University).

== See also ==

* [Harris–Benedict equation](/source/Harris%E2%80%93Benedict_equation)
* [Institute of Medicine Equation](/source/Institute_of_Medicine_Equation)

==References==
{{reflist}}

Category:Mass
Category:Nutrition
Category:Obesity
Category:Mathematics in medicine

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Schofield equation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schofield_equation) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schofield_equation?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.