Metabolic reference standards for the newborn, and the fatness of big babies

In the May 1967 issue of Pediatrics, Sinclair, Scopes, and Silverman discuss metabolic reference standards for neonates. The authors conclude that the most suitable standard is body weight minus extracellular fluid (ECF), since, over a wide range of birth weights, there is a nearly constant value for oxygen consumption (Vo2 per (body weight—ECF). The authors found fat-free weight, as well as several other standards, much less satisfactory, since over the birth weight range studied the value found for Vo2 per fat-free weight varied markedly with body weight.