Search

Abstract While it is widely acknowledged that exercise has positive effects on cognitive function, the specific impacts of different types of exercises, particularly open and closed skill exercises, on cognitive impairment continue to be a debated topic. In this study, we used fNIRS and cognitive psychology tasks to investigate the effects of different types of exercises on cognitive function and brain activity in young adults. We conducted an observational study to assess the cognitive function of participants who had engaged in these exercises for a long period. Additionally, we examined the effects of open skill exercise (badminton) and closed skill exercise (calisthenics) on localized blood flow in the prefrontal lobe of the brain using an experimental research method. Specifically, during the Stroop task, the badminton group exhibited significantly higher △HbO2 in channel 18, corresponding to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, compared to the calisthenics group (F = 4.485, P

ObjectiveThis study aimed to compare the effects of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) combined with resistance training (RT) versus HIIT alone on body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and glycolipid metabolism in young women with overweight/obesity.MethodsThis randomized controlled trial divided 40 subjects into an experimental group (HIIT+RT) and a control group (HIIT). Both groups underwent training three times per week for eight weeks. Body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and glycolipid levels were assessed before and after the intervention.ResultsThe results revealed that compared to baseline, both the experimental and control groups showed significant improvements in body weight, body mass index (BMI), Body fat, waist circumference (WC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak), vital capacity (VC), oxygen pulse (VO2/HR), minute ventilation, resting heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, triglycerides and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p

IntroductionExploring the energy expenditure and substrate metabolism data during exercise, 10-minute recovery, and 20-minute recovery phases in Tabata, HIIT(High-Intensity Interval Training), and MICT(Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training). This study explores the scientific aspects of weight reduction strategies, examining energy expenditure and substrate metabolism from various training perspectives. The aim is to establish a theoretical foundation for tailoring targeted exercise plans for individuals within the population with overweight/obesity.MethodsThis study used an experimental design with fifteen male university students with overweight/obesity. Participants underwent random testing with Tabata, HIIT, and MICT. Tabata involved eight sets of 20 seconds exercise and 10 seconds rest, totaling 4 minutes. HIIT included four sets of power cycling: 3 minutes at 80% VO2max intensity followed by 2 minutes at 20% VO2max. MICT comprised 30 minutes of exercise at 50% VO2max intensity. Gas metabolism indices were continuously measured. Subsequently, fat and glucose oxidation rates, along with energy expenditure, were calculated for each exercise type.ResultsDuring both the exercise and recovery phases, the Tabata group exhibited a significantly higher fat oxidation rate of (0.27 ± 0.03 g/min) compared to the HIIT group (0.20 ± 0.04 g/min, p

BackgroundThe prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is rapidly increasing globally. With a concerning increase among adolescents due to unhealthy habits, obesity, and hypertension, understanding the current status of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) related to CVD prevention among middle school students is crucial for developing effective school-based health programs to prevent CVD.MethodsThe analytic cross-sectional survey is used in questionnaires to assess KAP related to CVD prevention among middle school students (N = 17,731) from 50 schools across 16 provinces in China in June–July 2023. The pass rate of KAP scores is categorized as good and poor. Independent predictors of good KAP of CVD prevention are ascertained using a binary logistic regression model.ResultsThe study surveyed 8,118 (45.78%) junior high school students and 9,613 (54.22%) high school students. The overall mean [standard deviation (SD)] for the knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were 26.88 (8.12), 53.53 (7.22), and 39.80 (5.96), respectively. The knowledge scores had the lowest pass rate at 56.89%. Only 6.83% of the students know “the definition of blood pressure in adolescents.” Attitudes toward health were positive, though the attitude regarding “the danger of prolonged sedentary to cardiovascular health” scored lowest at 73.55%. The practice section had a pass rate of 89.30%; 40.27% of students reported that they spend more than an hour a day on screens. Only one-third of the students would go to bed before 12 o’clock. In univariate analysis, junior high school and high school students differed significantly in knowledge and practice (p

Objective To explore the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and health-related physical fitness among late adolescent college students, and to provide evidence for adolescent health promotion. MethodsThe data on 30523 first-year college students of Guangxi Normal University were collected from the National Student Physical Fitness Surveillance conducted annually from 2017 to 2021 for examining the association between body mass index (BMI) and health-related physical fitness among the students. Results The mean BMI for all the students aged 18.3 ± 0.3 years was 20.46 ± 2.89 (21.51 ± 3.47 for 7407 males, 20.13 ± 2.59 for 23116 females). Of the male students, 71.8%, 9.1%, 13.3%, and 5.8% were assessed as having normal weight (BMI > 17.8 and < 24.0), underweight (BMI ≤ 17.8), overweight (BMI ≥ 24.0 and < 28.0), and obesity (BMI ≥ 28.0); of the female students, 85.8%, 7.0%, 5.8%, and 1.4% were having normal weight (BMI > 17.1 and < 24.0), underweight (BMI ≤ 17.1), overweight, and obesity; while for all the students, those proportions were 82.4%, 7.5%, 7.6%, and 2.5%, respectively. The physical fitness index (PFI) of the male students with underweight (0.006 ± 2.719), overweight (– 1.823 ± 2.995) or obesity (– 4.621 ± 3.268) were significantly lower than that of the students with normal weight (0.708 ± 2.946) (all P < 0.01); the PFI of the female students with overweight (– 1.677 ± 2.944) or obesity (– 3.787 ± 3.425) were significantly lower than that of the students with normal weight (0.177 ± 2.974) (both P < 0.01). There exists a quadratic curve relationship between PFI and BMI for the students, with the maximum PFI values of 0.845 and 0.215 corresponding to the BMI of 18.0 and 17.3 for the male and female students. The results of binary logistic regression analysis showed that compared to those with normal weight, the underweight, overweight, and obese students were at an increased risk of having low PFI, with the odds ratios (95% confidence interval) of 1.82 (1.49 – 2.22), 5.20 (4.09 – 6.61), and 16.81 (9.21 – 30.68) for the males and 1.21 (1.07 – 1.36), 3.10 (2.59 – 3.70), and 8.13 (4.76 – 13.91) , respectively. ConclusionIn late adolescent college students, maintaining a normal BMI is the basis for ensuring physical fitness; both underweight and overweight could exert an adverse effect on health-related physical fitness and the adverse effect of overweight and obesity are much stronger.

AimsTo evaluate the effects of different durations of continuous aerobic exercise on prediabetic patients.Materials and methodsThe research encompassed randomized controlled trials that examined how various durations of aerobic exercise training affected outcomes related to Body Mass Index (BMI), Fasting blood glucose (FBG), 2-hour plasma glucose (2hPG), and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in individuals diagnosed with prediabetes. PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library were searched as of January 7, 2023. The Cochrane Risk of Bias, version 2 (ROB 2) tool was used to assess the risk of bias.ResultsA total of 10 RCTs with 815 prediabetic patients were included. The average age of the participants was 56.1 years, with a standard deviation of 5.1 years. Among the participants, 39.2% were male. The interventions consisted of aerobic dance, treadmill running, walking, and a combination of aerobic exercises. The training sessions occurred three or four times per week. In prediabetic patients, aerobic exercise demonstrated a significant reduction in BMI compared to the control group, with a weighted mean difference (WMD) of -1.44 kg/m2 (95% confidence interval [CI] -1.89, -0.98). There was a decrease in FBG levels, with WMD of -0.51 mmol/L (95% CI -0.70, -0.32). Additionally, aerobic training led to significant improvements in 2hPG levels, with a WMD of -0.76 mmol/L (95% CI -1.14, -0.38). Furthermore, prediabetic patients showed a decrease in HbA1c levels after engaging in aerobic training compared to the control group, with a WMD of -0.34% (95% CI -0.45, -0.23).ConclusionIn summary, engaging in aerobic exercise can have a significant positive impact on glycemic levels in individuals with prediabetes. It can also lead to reductions in BMI, FBG, 2hPG, HbA1c, and other relevant indicators. The extent of these improvements may vary slightly depending on the duration of the aerobic exercise intervention.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier CRD42023395515.

Context Waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) is a controversial evaluation index of cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) in children and adolescents. Objective To assess the accuracy of WHtR as a measure to screen for clusters of at least one CVRF (CVRF1), two CVRFs (CVRF2), and three CVRFs (CVRF3) in different ages, sexes, regions and cut-offs. Methods The PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCOhost, Springer, Taylor & Francis Online, Wiley Online Library, Wanfang, and CNKI databases were searched for eligible publications up to June 2021. The QUADAS-2 checklist was used to assess the methodology of the included studies. Results Twenty-two studies that evaluated 85281 children and adolescents aged 5–19 years were included in the meta-analysis. The AUSROC values were 0.56 (95% CI: 0.54–0.57), 0.82 (95% CI: 0.81–0.83), and 0.89 (95% CI: 0.89–0.90) for CVRF1, CVRF2, and CVRF3, respectively. Higher AUSROC values were found for adolescents (12–19 years), that is, 0.91 (95% CI: 0.88–0.93), 0.90 (95% CI: 0.87–0.92) for males, and 0.91 (95% CI: 0.90–0.91) for a cut-off of ≥ 0.51 in the identification of CVRF3. Conclusion WHtR can be used as an accurate screening tool for CVRF3 and CVRF2 in children and adolescents, and it is recommended to select different cut-offs according to different ages, sexes, and regions.

Caffeine is commonly used by athletes as an energy supplement, but studies on its effects on salivary antimicrobial proteins (sAMPs) in humans during exercise are rare with ambiguous findings. It is also still controversial whether hot environments affect sAMPs. Using a double-blind, randomized crossover design, we examined 12 endurance-trained male collegiate athletes who completed the following two experiments: a caffeine experiment (CAF) and a placebo experiment (PLA). The participants acutely consumed caffeine-containing (6 mg/kg body weight) sports drink (3 ml/kg body weight) or an equivalent amount of placebo sports drink and subsequently performed cycling exercise for 40 min in the heat (33 ± 0.24°C, 64 ± 2.50% relative humidity) at 50% of maximum output power, maintaining a pedal frequency of 60 rpm. Saliva was collected at 60 min pre-exercise (T–60), the start of exercise (T0), 20 min of exercise (T20), and the end of the exercise (T40), and salivary α-amylase (sAA) and lactoferrin (sLac) were tested. The rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was measured at T0–T40, while core body temperature (Tre) and heart rate (HR) were monitored continuously. Tre, HR, and RPE increased with time during the exercise (p < 0.01), with no difference in Tre and HR between the CAF and PLA (p > 0.05), but RPE was higher in the PLA than in the CAF (p < 0.05). sLac concentrations were significantly higher at T20 and T40 than at T–60 (p < 0.01) and higher at T40 than at T0 and T20 (p < 0.01), with no difference between the CAF and PLA (p > 0.05). Compared with T–60, sAA activity was significantly increased at T0, T20, and T40 (p < 0.01). sAA activity was significantly higher at T40 than at T0 and T20 (p < 0.01), at T20 than at T0 (p < 0.05), and in the CAF than in the PLA (p < 0.01). Heat stress caused by acute exercise in hot environments did not impair the sAMPs parameters of the participants. Instead, the participants showed transient increase in sAA activity and unchanged sLac concentrations. Caffeine may increase salivary markers related to immune response during exercise.

Backgroundγ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a common ingredient in sports supplements and other health products, regulates body temperature in the preoptic area and anterior hypothalamus (PO/AH). To date, no study has examined the effect of GABA on thermoregulation during exercise in humans in a cold temperature environment (11 ± 0.3°C, 45% ± 2% relative humidity).MethodsWe performed a randomized, double-blind study. Ten trained male athletes consumed either a drink (3 ml/kg weight) containing GABA (1,000 mg, trial G) or an equivalent amount of placebo drink (trial C) before exercise. They rested for 20 min and then cycled at 60% of maximum output power for 40 min, pedaling at 60 rpm, and recovered for 20 min. Core temperature (Tc), skin temperature (upper arm, chest, thigh, calf), and heart rate (HR) were monitored at rest (T0), exercise begins (T20), 20 min of exercise (T40), the exercise ends (T60), and at recovery (T80).ResultsCompared to T0, Tc decreased significantly at T20 and increased significantly at T40, T60 and T80 (p < 0.01). From 35–80 min, the Tc was higher in trial G (peaked at 37.96 ± 0.25°C) than in trial C (37.89 ± 0.37°C), but it failed to reach significant difference (p > 0.05); Tsk continued to increase during exercise and was significantly higher than T0 at T40 (p < 0.05), T60 and T80 (p < 0.01). There was no significant difference in Tsk between the two trials (p > 0.05).ConclusionOur findings provide initial evidence that oral administration of GABA does not affect thermoregulation and has no adverse effects on the body as an ergogenic exercise supplement during exercise in cold environments.