The impact of exercise on growth factors in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Aging results in many changes in health status, body composition, muscle strength, and, ultimately, functional capacity. These changes coincide with significant alterations in the endocrine system, such as insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and IGF-binding proteins (IGFBPs), and may be associated with many symptoms of aging. The objectives of this study is to investigate the potential influence of different types of exercise, such as resistance training and aerobic training, on IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 levels in postmenopausal women. METHODS: Medline, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases were systematically searched up to November 2023. The Cochrane Collaboration tool was used to assess the risk of bias and the quality of the studies. The random-effects model, weighted mean difference (WMD), and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the overall effect. Between-study heterogeneity was assessed using the chi-squared and I2 tests. RESULTS: Seventeen studies were included in the present systematic review and 16 studies were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled results from 16 studies (21 trials) with 1170 participants examining the impact of exercise on IGF-1 concentration showed a significant increase in IGF-1, and the pooled results among six studies (trials) showed a significant decrease in IGFBP-3 concentration (730 participants). In addition, resistance training and aerobic training had a significant effect on increasing IGF-1 concentration post-exercise compared with placebo. CONCLUSION: Based on this meta-analysis, Women who have completed menopause and followed an exercise routine showed changes in IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 levels that can indirectly be associated with risk of chronic age-related conditions.

The healthy/unhealthy dietary pattern is associated with resting metabolic rate status among women with overweight/obesity.

BACKGROUND: Although various dietary patterns have been indicated to be associated with the resting metabolic rate [RMR], limited data are available in this field. This study was therefore focused on the association between dietary patterns and resting metabolic rate among participants with overweight and obesity. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 304 women with overweight or obesity (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2), aged 18-50. Anthropometric assessments, physical activity and biochemical measurements were assessed. RMR was also measured by means of indirect calorimetry. Dietary intake of participants was evaluated by 147-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire [FFQ]. RESULTS: There was a significant association between higher adherence to the healthy dietary pattern [HDP] and RMR (P = 0.05), intakes of protein (P = 0.003), minerals (P = 0.001) as well as fat free mass [FFM] (P = 0.002), bone mineral content (P = 0.001), skeletal muscle mass (P = 0.001), soft lean mass (P = 0.002) and visceral fat area (P = 0.05). Also, there was a considerable association between higher adherence to the unhealthy dietary pattern [UHDP] and fasting blood sugar [FBS] (P = 0.05). Using multinomial logistic regression has been shown that the medium adherence to the HDP was marginally significant with decreased resting metabolic rate [Dec. RMR] group in crude model (OR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.28-1.05, P = 0.07). After controlling for various confounders such as age, FFM, physical activity, and energy intake, the association between Dec. RMR group and the lowest quartile of the HDP (OR: 0.36; 95% CI: 0.14-0.91, P = 0.03) became significant as well as the association between Dec. RMR group and medium adherence to the HDP (OR: 0.42; 95% CI: 0.18-0.97, P = 0.04). The medium adherence to the UHDP in crude model was also significant with increased resting metabolic rate [Inc. RMR] group (OR: 2.59; 95% CI: 1.01-6.65, P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that there are significant associations between dietary patterns and RMR status.

Associations of dietary fats intake and adipokines levels in obese women.

AIM: RBP4, Vaspin and omentin-1 are adipokines, which play an important role in the development of obesity-related complications. The main aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different kinds of fat intake on adipokine levels in obese women. METHODS: A total of 272 obese women (BMI ≥ 30) were included in the current cross-sectional study, according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Body composition was measured using a body composition analyzer. For the measurement of retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4), vaspin and omentin-1 serum concentrations, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method was used. Dietary intake was assessed using a 3-day 24-h dietary recall. RESULTS: Statistically significant differences were found between polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFAs) and linoleic acid intake and vaspin and omentin-1 levels. In addition, there were found statistically significant relationships between cholesterol, monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFAs) and total fat intakes with omentin-1 levels. Also, RBP4 and vaspin levels were different significant with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intake. Moreover, the results revealed that there were statistically significant differences between RBP4 levels and α-linolenic acid and oleic acid intake. CONCLUSION: This study revealed that by examining RBP4, vaspin and omentin-1 as adipokines, a novel link between fat intakes and adipokine levels was found.

The effect of curcumin supplementation on recovery following exercise-induced muscle damage and delayed-onset muscle soreness: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: curcumin consumption may have a protective effect against exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) through stabilization of the cell membrane via inhibition of free radical formation. Evidence supporting a protective role of curcumin after physical activity induced muscle injury in humans, however, it is inconsistent. METHODS: Medline, Scopus, and Google scholar were systematically searched up to May 2020. The Cochrane Collaboration tool for assessing the risk of bias was used for assessing the quality of studies. Random effects model, weighted mean difference (WMD), and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used for estimating the overall effect. Between-study heterogeneity was assessed using the chi-squared and I2 statistic. RESULTS: The results revealed a significant effect of curcumin supplementation on reducing creatine kinase (CK) (weighted mean difference [WMD] = -48.54 IU.L-1 ; 95% CI: -80.667, -16.420; p = .003) and muscle soreness index decrease (WMD = -0.476; 95% CI: -0.750, -0.202; p = .001). Moreover, a subgroup analysis resulted in a significant decrease in CK concentrations and muscle soreness index, according to follow-ups after exercise, dose of curcumin, duration of studies, exercise type, train status and study design. CONCLUSIONS: The current evidence revealed a efficacy of curcumin in reducing CK serum levels and muscle soreness index among adults. Therefore, curcumin may be known as a priority EIMD recovery agent in interventions.

Association between dietary energy density with mental health and sleep quality in women with overweight/obesity.

OBJECTIVE: Mental health, sleep quality, and dietary intake are interlinked. Impairment of mental health and low sleep quality may contribute to obesity through the consumption of diets high in energy density. Nevertheless, it is not clear whether dietary energy density (DED) influences mental health. This study aimed to examine the association of DED with mental health indices, including depression, anxiety, stress, and sleep quality in women with overweight/obesity. RESULTS: There was a decreasing trajectory in serum triglyceride across quartiles of DED (from Q1 to Q4) in the crude analysis and also after adjustment for age, BMI, and physical activity After adjustment for age, BMI, and physical activity, subjects in the highest quartile of DED had higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure. DED was significantly associated with increased odds of stress in the crude (OR = 2.15, 95% CI 1.01-4.56, p = 0.04) and adjusted model for age, BMI, and physical activity (OR = 2.56, 95% CI 1.13-5.79, p = 0.02). No significant relationship was observed between DED and depression, anxiety and sleep quality. In conclusion, current study shows preliminary evidence of an association between DED and stress.

A High-Protein/Low-Fat Diet May Interact with Vitamin D-Binding Protein Gene Variants to Moderate the Risk of Depression in Apparently Healthy Adults.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown that depression is inversely correlated with high protein and low fat intake and positively correlated with vitamin D-binding protein (VDBP). Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the interaction between protein/fat dietary patterns and VDBP genotypes with regard to the risk of depression in apparently healthy adults who have not been diagnosed with any chronic disease. METHODS: In this study, 265 individuals (126 males and 139 females) aged 18-55 years were recruited from the communities of central and west Tehran based on convenience sampling. Body composition was measured with a body composition analyzer and depression symptoms were categorized as normal, moderate depression, or severe depression using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21) questionnaire. Dietary patterns were determined by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire to assess typical food intake during the 12-month period. Blood samples were collected from and biochemical measurements performed on all participants. An analysis of two polymorphisms (rs7041 and rs4588) in the GC gene, which encodes VDBP, was performed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. RESULTS: A statistically significant association was found between depression and diet (p = 0.03) after having categorized the participants into three groups: a high-protein/low-fat (HP/LF) group, a moderate-protein/moderate-fat (MP/MF) group, and a low-protein/high-fat (LP/HF) group. Moreover, the findings demonstrated that depression was related to both the rs7041 and the rs4588 polymorphism (p = 0.05 and p = 0.02, respectively). We next used multinomial logistic modeling to investigate the risk of depression. A significant interaction was observed between HP/LF diet and the rs7041 polymorphism in the moderate- and severe-depression groups (ß = -0.30, p = 0.05, and ß = -0.48, p = 0.01, respectively). CONCLUSION: This study showed that an HP/LF diet interacts with the rs7041 polymorphism, with T allele carriers having a greater prevalence of moderate and severe depression.