|
 "This study showed that brisk walking can be used as a strategy to
reduce momentary food craving," said Adrian Meule, a psychologist at
Ruhr University Bochum in Germany who wasn't involved in the
research.
Exercise may provide some cognitive stimulation that interferes with
thoughts about the craved food, and the discipline to regularly take
walks to circumvent cravings might also improve the ability to
follow through with healthy food choices, Meule said in an email.
Globally, almost 2 billion adults are overweight or obese, according
to the World Health Organization. This increases their risk of
premature death, breathing difficulties, cardiovascular disease,
diabetes, hypertension, fractures and mental health issues.
The study, by Larissa Ledochowski at the University of Innsbruck in
Austria and colleagues, examined the impact of a 15-minute treadmill
walk on sugar cravings in a group of 47 overweight people who were
on average about 28 years old.
To elevate sugary snack cravings, participants were asked to abstain
from eating any sweets for three days at the start of the study.
They were also asked to fast, drink nothing but water, and avoid any
exercise for two hours prior to each assessment of cravings.
Then, in an exercise session, some participants warmed up for two
minutes slowly on a treadmill then walked for 15 minutes at a pace
fast enough to catch a bus, but not to the point of breathlessness.
For comparison, other participants, instead of exercise, were told
to sit passively for 15 minutes without doing anything.
After exercising or sitting still, all of the participants sat
quietly for five minutes. Then, they did a computerized test
designed to boost physiological arousal and stress. Next, they were
asked to unwrap a piece of candy and hold it without eating it.
Throughout the process, participants were questioned seven different
times about their food cravings and their feelings of arousal or
stress.
Those who exercised reported significantly lower cravings for sweets
mid-way through the experiment and at the end than the participants
who didn't get on the treadmill.
Even when people unwrapped candy and held it in their hands, people
who exercised first had fewer cravings than those who didn't.
[to top of second column] |
The study is small, and its limitations include relying on people to
tell the truth about abstaining from sweets before the start of the
experiment and a lack of measurements to track how much exertion was
required by each participant to walk on the treadmill.
They were also exercising at a fairly low intensity, said Margaret
Schneider, a researcher at the University of California, Irvine.
"The study only looks at the short-term impact, so we really
shouldn't draw any conclusions about how one 15-minute exercise bout
would impact eating behavior throughout the day," Schneider, who
wasn't involved in the study, said in an email.
Even so, exercise does have the ability to improve mood, and it's
possible that this could result in reduced cravings among
individuals who eat for emotional reasons, she said. At the same
time, mild exercise can also trigger metabolic processes that make
more blood sugar available to the brain, reducing the craving for
sugary foods.
And the study offers a reason to consider working at a treadmill
desk, also known as walking work stations, Schneider said.
"Presumably, remaining active at a low intensity throughout the day
will result in less snacking and enhanced mood among the
overweight."
Keeping healthy snacks on hand will also help exercise have the
intended effect on food choices, Meule said. "Otherwise, temporarily
reducing food craving by brisk walking will be ineffective. Even if
people successfully manage to control their food cravings, they
still have to eat something."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1HVLcXQ
PLOS ONE, online March 11, 2015.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
