Multicomponent Exercise Training Combined with Nutritional Counselling Improves Physical Function, Biochemical and Anthropometric Profiles in Obese Children: A Pilot Study.

Aerobics or strength exercise plus diet interventions have been shown to counteract childhood obesity. However, little is known with regard to periodized multicomponent exercise interventions combined with nutritional counselling, which might be less demanding but more enjoyable and respectful of children and adolescents' nature. In order to analyze the impact of such a multimodal approach, 18 obese children (10.8 ± 1.6 years; 63% females; z Body Mass Index 3 ± 0.4) trained for 60 min, twice weekly and were measured for body composition, biochemical parameters and physical function. We found that 16 weeks of multimodal intervention (14 of training), based on fun-type skill-learning physical activities and physical conditioning with challenging circuits and games, together with nutritional counselling, led to an attendance > 80%, with significant overall health improvement. Body composition was enhanced (p < 0.01 for z BMI, mid-upper-arm-circumference, waist-to-height ratio, tricipital and subscapular skinfolds, body-fat % by Slaughter equation and Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry body fat% and trunk fat%), as well as metabolic profile (LDL cholesterol, gamma-glutamyl transferase , alanine aminotransferase ; p < 0.05), homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR; p < 0.05) and inflammatory response (C-Reactive Protein; p < 0.05). Physical fitness was also improved (p < 0.01) through better cardiovascular test scores and fundamental movement patterns (Functional Movement Screen-7, FMS-4). Tailoring multimodal supervised strategies ensured attendance, active participation and enjoyment, compensating for the lack of strict caloric restrictions and the low volume and training frequency compared to the exercise prescription guidelines for obesity. Nutritional counselling reinforced exercise benefits and turned the intervention into a powerful educational strategy. Teamwork and professionals' specificity may also be key factors.

Physical exercise in the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

Dementia is one of the greatest global challenges for health and social care in the 21st century. Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common type of dementia, is by no means an inevitable consequence of growing old. Several lifestyle factors may increase, or reduce, an individual's risk of developing AD. Much has been written over the ages about the benefits of exercise and physical activity. Among the risk factors associated with AD is a low level of physical activity. The relationship between physical and mental health was established several years ago. In this review, we discuss the role of exercise (aerobic and resistance) training as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment and prevention of AD. Older adults who exercise are more likely to maintain cognition. We address the main protective mechanism on brain function modulated by physical exercise by examining both human and animal studies. We will pay especial attention to the potential role of exercise in the modulation of amyloid ß turnover, inflammation, synthesis and release of neurotrophins, and improvements in cerebral blood flow. Promoting changes in lifestyle in presymptomatic and predementia disease stages may have the potential for delaying one-third of dementias worldwide. Multimodal interventions that include the adoption of an active lifestyle should be recommended for older populations.

Beneficial Effects of Inspiratory Muscle Training Combined With Multicomponent Training in Elderly Active Women.

Purpose: This study aims to analyze changes in Maximum Inspiratory Pressure (MIP), lung function, cardiorespiratory fitness, and blood pressure, in 10 healthy active elderly women, following 7 weeks of inspiratory muscle training (IMT) combined with a multicomponent training program (MCTP). The association among these health parameters, their changes after training (deltas), and the influence of MIP at baseline (MIPpre) are also considered. Methods: IMT involved 30 inspirations at 50% of the MIP, twice daily, 7 days a week, while MCTP was 1 hr, twice a week. MIP, lung function (FVC, FEV1, FEV1/FVC, FEF25-75%, PEF), 6MWT, and blood pressure (SBP, DBP), jointly with body composition, were assessed before and after the intervention. Results: Seven weeks were enough to improved MIP (p = .019; d = 1.397), 6MWT (p = .012; d = .832), SBP (p = .003; d = 1.035) and DBP (p = .024; d = .848). Despite the high physical fitness (VO2 peak: M = 23.38, SD = 3.39 ml·min·Kg-1), MIPpre was low (M = 39.00, SD = 7.63 cmH2O) and displayed a significant negative correlation with ΔMIPpre-post (r = -.821; p < .004), showing that women who started the intervention with lower MIP achieved higher improvements in inspiratory muscle strength after training. Conclusions: No significant changes in spirometric parameters may signal that lung function is independent of early improvements in inspiratory muscles and cardiorespiratory fitness. Absence of correlation between physical fitness and respiratory outcomes suggests that being fit does not ensure cardiorespiratory health in active elderly women, so IMT might be beneficial and should supplement the MCTP in this population.

Differences in intermittent postural control between normal-weight and obese children.

AIM: The main objective of this study was to determine differences in postural control between obese and non-obese children. METHODS: The study design was cross-sectional, prospective, between-subjects. Postural control variables were obtained from a group of obese children and a normal-weight control group under two different postural conditions: bipedal standing position with eyes open and bipedal standing with eyes closed. Variables were obtained for each balance condition using time domain and sway-density plot analysis of the center of pressure signals acquired by means of a force plate. RESULTS: Pairwise comparisons revealed significant differences between obese and normal-weight children in mean velocity in antero-posterior and medio-lateral directions, ellipse area and mean distance with both eyes open and eyes closed. Normal-weight subjects obtained lower values in all these variables than obese subjects. Furthermore, there were differences between both groups in mean peaks with eyes open and in mean time with eyes closed. CONCLUSION: Alterations were detected in the intermittent postural control in obese children. According to the results obtained, active anticipatory control produces higher center of pressure displacement responses in obese children and the periods during which balance is maintained by passive control and reflex mechanisms are of shorter duration.