What does “vital losses” mean in the following context:

Question

“Since the metabolic rate is fastest in the morning and slows throughout the day, it is more likely that the calories consumed during breakfast will be utilized by the body and not stored as fat. Skipping breakfast, on the other hand, may result in vital losses of muscle and a subsequent decrease in metabolism.”?

Answer 1

I think the writer must be meaning serious muscle wasting. I can’t find any scientific reference to “vital loss” or “vital loss of muscle.” Metabolism in this context is specific to how a body gets energy for its activities. If no calories are taken in and there’s no stored fat available, the body will metabolize muscle tissue.

If this is a nutrition text, I suggest you check the source for other uses of “vital loss of muscle.”

Answer 2

Think of the word "vital" this way. When you go to the doctor, they take your "vital" signs - blood pressure, temperature, etc. These are the signs of your basic body functions to determine if you are alive and well. So if you place that into the sentence, you would see the results of basic, life, functional losses of muscle.

Metabolism is defined by the dictionary as "the chemical processes that occur within a living organism in order to maintain life."

Therefore, an interpretation or paraphrase of the sentence would be:

Not eating in the morning may result in functional deterioration of muscle and, in turn, lower chemical processes to maintain life.

I hope that helps.

Sue H.