Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Energy Balance and Weight Control (Male and Female): Considerations

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Endocrinology of Physical Activity and Sport

Part of the book series: Contemporary Endocrinology ((COE))

  • 2817 Accesses

Abstract

Energy balance is a complex process influenced by numerous factors including sex, age, acute and chronic exercise, genetic factors, as well as metabolic-, stress-, and sex-related hormones. This chapter focuses on sex-related differences in weight control with special attention to the roles of leptin, insulin, ghrelin, catecholamines, cortisol, estrogen, and androgens; their impact on appetite, metabolism, and body fat distribution is also discussed. Some of the most notable sex differences in energy balance are in the amount and distribution of body fat. Women tend to have greater fat mass than men and tend to store more fat subcutaneously while men store more in visceral locations. Women also have a more difficult time achieving negative caloric balance following exercise as their appetites are not suppressed to the same degree as men’s. The hormonal factors supporting the conservation of mass for reproduction in females are also proposed in this chapter. Finally, sex differences in resting hormone levels and their impact on fuel metabolism during rest and exercise are discussed.

Note: With regard to my affiliation, I am an Assistant Professor in the Center for the Study of Sport and Exercise at Seattle University. I am employed full-time at Free & Clear as a Program Evaluator but also teach as an Adjunct at Seattle University. While I would normally say to only include my full-time position, I feel that the academic affiliation with SU is important to note (especially for this type of project and subject matter).

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 139.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 179.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Asarian L, Geary N. Modulation of appetite by gonadal steroid hormones. Philoso Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2006;361:1251–63.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Bjorntorp P. Abdominal fat distribution and the metabolic syndrome. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 1992;20 Suppl 8:S26–8.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Bjorntorp P. Body fat distribution, insulin resistance, and metabolic diseases. Nutrition. 1997;13:795–803.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Blouin K, Boivin A, Tchernof A. Androgens and body fat distribution. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2007;108:272–80.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Blundell JE, King NA. Exercise, appetite control, and energy balance. Nutrition. 2000;16(7/8):519–22.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Bouchard C, Despres JP, Mauriege P. Genetic and nongenetic determinants of regional fat distribution. Endocr Rev. 1993;14:72–93.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Broom DR, Stensel DJ, Bishop NC, Burns SF, Miyashita M. Exercised-induced suppression of acylated ghrelin in humans. J Appl Physiol. 2007;102:2165–71.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Brown LM, Clegg DJ. Central effects of estradiol in the regulation of food intake, body weight, and adiposity. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2010;122:65–73.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Butera PC, Bradway DM, Cataldo NJ. Modulation of the satiety effect of cholecystokinin by estradiol. Physiol Behav. 1993;53(6):1235–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Carey DG, Jenkins AB, Campbell LV, Freund J, Chisholm DJ. Abdominal fat and insulin resistance in normal and overweight women: direct measurements reveal a strong relationship in subjects at both low and high risk of NIDDM. Diabetes. 1996;45:633–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Casabiell X, Pineiro V, Peino R, Lage M, Camina J, et al. Gender differences in both spontaneous and stimulated leptin secretion by human omental adipose tissue in vitro: dexamethasone and estradiol stimulate leptin release in women, but not in men. J Clin Endocrinol Metabol. 1998;83:2149–55.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Clegg DJ, Brown LM, Woods SC, Benoit SC. Gonadal hormones determine sensitivity to central leptin and insulin. Diabetes. 2006;55(4):978–87.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Davis JF, Choi DL, Benoit SC. Insulin, leptin and reward. Trends Endocrinol Metab. 2010;21(2):1–12.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Donahoo WT, Levine JA, Melanson EL. Variability in energy expenditure and its components. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2004;7:599–605.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Friedman JF, Halaas JL. Leptin and the regulation of body weight in mammals. Nature. 1998;395:763–70.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Gil-Campos M, Aguilera CM, Canete R, Gil A. Ghrelin: a hormone regulating food intake and energy ­homeostasis. Br J Nutr. 2006;96:201–26.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Hagobian TA, Braun B. Physical activity and hormonal regulation of appetite: sex differences and weight control. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2010;38(1):25–30.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Horton TJ, Pagliassotti MJ, Hobbs K, Hill JO. Fuel metabolism in men and women during and after long-duration exercise. J Appl Physiol. 1998;85(5):1823–32.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Kirschbaum C, Kudielka BM, Gaab J, Schommer NC, Hellhammer DH. Impact of gender, menstrual cycle phase, and oral contraceptives on the activity of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. Psychosom Med. 1999;61(2):154–62.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Klausen B, Toubro S, Astrup A. Age and sex effects on energy expenditure. Am J Clin Nutr. 1997;65:895–907.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Kojima M, Hosoda H, Date Y, Nakazato M, Matsuo H, Kangawa K. Ghrelin is a growth-hormone-releasing acylated peptide from stomach. Nature. 1999;402(6762):656–60.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Kojima M, Kangawa K. Ghrelin: structure and function. Physiol Rev. 2005;85(2):495–522.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Krotkiewski M, Bjorntorp P, Sjostrom L, Smith U. Impact of obesity on metabolism in men and women. Importance of regional adipose tissue distribution. J Clin Invest. 1983;72(3):1150–62.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Lovejoy JC, Sainsbury A, Stock Conference 2008 Working Group. Sex differences in obesity and the regulation of energy homeostasis. Obes Rev. 2009;10:154–67.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Lustig RH, Sen S, Soberman JE, Velasquez-Mieyer PA. Obesity, leptin resistance, and the effects of insulin reduction. Int J Obes (Lond). 2004;28:1344–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Makovey J, Naganathan V, Seibel M, Sambrook P. Gender differences in plasma ghrelin and its relation to body composition and bone – an opposite sex twin study. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2007;66:530–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. McMurray RG, Hackney AC. Interactions of metabolic hormones, adipose tissue and exercise. Sports Med. 2005;35(5):393–412.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Messina MM, Boersma G, Overton JM, Eckel LA. Estradiol decreases the orexigenic effect of melanin-concentrating hormones in ovariectomized rats. Physiol Behav. 2006;88(4–5):523–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Paul DR, Novotny JA, Rumpler WV. Effects of the interaction of sex and food intake on the relation between energy expenditure and body composition. Am J Clin Nutr. 2004;79:385–9.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Prentice A, Jebb S. Energy intake/physical activity interactions in the homeostasis of body weight regulation. Nutr Rev. 2004;62(7):S98–104.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Pritzlaff-Roy CJ, Wideman L, Weltman J, Abbott R, Gutgesell M, Hartman ML, et al. Gender governs the relationship between exercise intensity and growth hormone release in young adults. J Appl Physiol. 2002;92:2053–60.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Roepstorff C, Steffensen CH, Madsen M, Stallknecht B, Kanstrup IL, Richter EA, et al. Gender differences in substrate utilization during submaximal exercise in endurance-trained subjects. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2002;282:E435–47.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Schulze MB, Manson JE, Ludwig DS, Colditz GA, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC, et al. Sugar-sweetened beverages, weight gain, and incidence of type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women. J Am Med Assoc. 2004;292:927–34.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Schwartz MW, Woods SC, Porte DJ, Seeley RJ, Baskin DG. Central nervous system control of food intake. Nature. 2000;404:661–71.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Shi H, Seeley RJ, Clegg DJ. Sexual differences in the control of energy homeostasis. Front Neuroendocrinol. 2009;30:396–404.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Stensel D. Exercise, appetite and appetite-regulating hormones: implications for food intake and weight control. Ann Nutr Metab. 2010;57(supp 2):36–42.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Tchoukalova YD, Koutari C, Votruba SB, Tchkonia T, Giorgadze N, Thomou T, et al. Sex- and depot-dependent differences in adipogenesis in normal weight humans. Obesity. 2010;18(10):1875–80.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Wade GN, Gray JM, Bartness TJ. Gonadal influences on adiposity. Int J Obes (Lond). 1985;9(Supp. 1):83–92.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Westerterp KR, Goran MI. Relationship between physical activity related energy expenditure and body composition: a gender difference. Int J Obes (Lond). 1997;21:184–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Whybrow S, Hughes DA, Ritz P, Johnstone AM, Horgan GW, King N, et al. The effect of an incremental increase in exercise on appetite, eating behavior and energy balance in lean men and women feeding ad libitum. Br J Nutr. 2008;100:1109–15.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Woods SC, Gotoh K, Clegg DJ. Gender differences in the control of energy homeostasis. Exp Biol Med. 2003;228(10):1175–80.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Woods SC, Schwartz MW, Baskin DG, Seeley RJ. Food intake and the regulation of body weight. Annu Rev Psychol. 2000;51:255–77.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. World Health Organization, Obesity and overweight. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/index.html. Accessed 8 Jul 2011.

  44. Wren AM, Seal LJ, Cohen MA, Brynes AE, Frost GS, Murphy KG, et al. Ghrelin enhances appetite and increases food intake in humans. J Clin Endocrinol Metabol. 2001;86(12):5992–5.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Zouhal H, Jacob C, Delamarche P, Gratas-Delamarche A. Cathecholamines and the effects of exercise, training and gender. Sports Med. 2008;38(5):401–23.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sport and Exercise Science, Seattle University, Seattle, WA, USA

    Kristin Ondrak PHD

Authors
  1. Kristin Ondrak PHD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kristin Ondrak PHD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Hadassah-Hebrew UMC, 4 Ha'razim St, Jerusalem, 91120, Jerusalem, Israel

    Naama Constantini

  2. , Applied Physiology Laboratory, UNC at Chapel Hill, 203 Fezter Hall, Chapel Hill, 27599, North Carolina, USA

    Anthony C. Hackney

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Ondrak, K. (2013). Energy Balance and Weight Control (Male and Female): Considerations. In: Constantini, N., Hackney, A. (eds) Endocrinology of Physical Activity and Sport. Contemporary Endocrinology. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-314-5_10

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-314-5_10

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-62703-313-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-62703-314-5

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation