Energy expenditure and physical activity level of urban dwellers of Papua New Guinea: a comparative study using a heart rate monitor and an accelerometer

Abstract

Basal metabolic rate (BMR) and energy expenditure at rest and during step-tests were measured among urban migrants of Papua New Guinea Highlanders (n=6, 3 males and 3 females). Total energy expenditure (TEE) was assessed by heart-rate (HR) monitoring (flex-HR method) and physical activity level (PAL) calculation was based on BMR (i, e. PAL=TEE/BMR). All males had relatively higher PAL (above 2.0), whereas PAL of females varied (range, 1.51-1.96). These high PALS observed in males may reflect that they performed unusual heavy task (carpentry) during survey period. In addition, evaluation of accelerometers for the assessment of TEE was conducted by using TEE estimated from HR monitoring as reference . It was found that the TEE estimated from the accelerometer counts was highly correlated with that estimated from HR monitoring (r=0.85, p<0.05). The results suggest that the acceleration monitoring is a useful method for assessing physical activity of free-living populations.