When the exercise does not work

• May 1, 2024

An important new study suggests that statins , medicines that reduce cholesterol and that they are the most prescribed drugs in the world, they can block some of the benefits of exercise , according to blog information Well of the NYTimes .

People who should benefit most from exercise (those who are sedentary, overweight and at increased risk of heart disease) may not have a good response to exercise after taking statins , Explain John P. Thyfault, professor of nutrition and exercise physiology at the University of Missouri and lead author of the study .

As part of the study published online in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology , compared the aerobic test markers of two groups of men and women with metabolic problems , where one of them was prescribed diet and medication (statins ), against another with a diet but without medication.

Both groups underwent muscle biopsies and treadmill tests to determine their maximum aerobic capacity, as part of the supervised exercise program for 12 weeks.

Non-medicated volunteers improved their aerobic fitness significantly after three months of exercise, by more than 10% on average. But volunteers who statins gained just 1% on average, in their physical condition, and in some the aerobic capacity was lower at the end of the study than at its inception.

In this regard, the researchers found remarkable differences in the levels of an enzyme related to the health of the mitochondria, the small energy-producing parts of a cell, after microscopically examining the participants' muscle biopsy.

Mitochondria generally increase in number and power when someone exercises, but in the volunteers who took statins , enzyme levels related to mitochondrial health decreased by approximately 4.5% during the course of the experiment. Levels that increased by 13% in the group that did not take the medication.

It should be mentioned that statins are medications designed to reduce the body's cholesterol levels, especially the levels of low density lipoprotein, or "bad" cholesterol .

They are usually prescribed for people with the high cholesterol and other risk factors for heart disease, plus some doctors believe they should be used prophylactically by almost everyone over 50.

In as much, the improvement of the aerobic capacity, by even a small percentage through exercise, reduces the probability of premature death up to 50%.

While it could be considered, in theory, that the combination of statins and exercise provide a greater health benefit, this study seems to prove otherwise.

For people with a family history of high cholesterol or heart disease , or that they themselves have the high cholesterol , "there is no doubt that statins they save lives, "says Dr. Thyfault, but they negatively affect the response to exercise, which they must continue to study.
 

Video Medicine: How Does Exercise Impact Weight Loss? (May 2024).