Article: Exercise Before Fatty Meal May Curb Bad Effects

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Here's something that may be of help during the holiday eating season!

Exercise Before Fatty Meal May Curb Bad Effects

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By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People gearing up for an indulgent holiday feast may

want to make time for some pre-meal exercise. A small study out Monday suggests

that a long walk before a fatty meal can lessen the effects of high fat intake

on blood vessel function.

Eating high-fat foods is known to transiently elevate levels of blood fats such

as triglycerides, and recent research has shown that a rich meal can also

temporarily impair the functioning of the lining of blood vessels-called the

endothelium.

The new study, published in the December 21st issue of the Journal of the

American College of Cardiology, suggests that moderate exercise can blunt these

effects in both thin and obese middle-aged men.

The 20 men in the study ate a rich meal -- featuring whipped cream, chocolate

and a whopping 80 grams of fat -- under two conditions on separate days. In one

condition, the men spent 90 minutes walking on a treadmill the day before the

meal; in the other, they had their meal after an exercise-free day.

The researchers found that the men's post-meal triglyceride levels rose to a

lesser degree when they exercised before the meal. Moreover, their blood vessel

function -- specifically, the dilation of small vessels in the forearm in

response to increased blood flow -- was better when compared with the

no-exercise condition.

" Our results do suggest that exercise can help to lessen the potential adverse

effects of fatty meals on blood vessel function, " Dr. Gill, the study's

lead author, told Reuters Health.

But that's not to say that people who exercise regularly have a license to

indulge, according to Gill, of the University of Glasgow in the UK.

There was a general decrease in blood vessel function after the fatty meal,

whether the men exercised or not, Gill and his colleagues found. The impairment

was less pronounced, however, when the meal came after a long walk.

Past research has shown that high-fat meals, but not low-fat ones, can

temporarily dampen normal blood vessel dilation. The concern, according to

Gill's team, is that if these post-meal effects are repeated daily over time,

there will be consequences for a person's long-term cardiovascular health.

Gill said the average person downs about 70 to 100 grams of fat per day, which

indicates that their blood fats are elevated for the majority of the day, every

day. The new findings suggest that regular exercise can curb the potential

damage to blood vessel function -- and offer another possible reason for why

exercise improves heart health.

It's not clear exactly how pre-meal exercise countered the effects of the fatty

meal. According to Gill, activity may help by lowering blood fat levels and

giving fat particles less opportunity for " interacting " with the vessel walls,

or by giving a boost to blood flow that can last for hours afterward.

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, included 10 normal-weight men

and 10 obese men. For the exercise condition, they walked at a moderate pace for

90 minutes. According to Gill, shorter exercise sessions may also be helpful for

blood vessel function, since the researchers previously found that 30 minutes of

activity can lower post-meal blood fat levels.

SOURCE: Journal of the American College of Cardiology, December 21, 2004.