Nutritional and Immunological Assessment of Ranger Students with IncreasedCaloric Intake

摘要

US Army Ranger Training is one of the armed forces most physically demandingtraining schools. Independent research by USARIEM and WRAIR during the summer of 1991 documented the severity of the physiological effects of Ranger Training. Energy deficits averaged 30% over the 8 weeks of training. The students averaged only 4 hours of sleep per 24 hour periods. The affect of these stressors resulted in an average of 16% decrease in body weight which was reflected in a change in body composition of decrease body fat from a start of 15% down to 5%. One of the most important findings was the severe suppression of cellular immune function. The present Study describes a caloric intervention study performed during the summer of 1992. The intervention increased the caloric intake by 16% over the 8 week training period. This small increase in calories decreased weight loss to 12% and markedly Improved changes in body composition and biochemical markers of metabolism. Although the caloric intervention improved cellular immune function, the responses remained suppressed to clinically significant levels.