Retro walking treadmill training reduces C-reactive protein levels in overweight and obese young adults: A randomized comparative study.

Background and Aims: Retro walking has been shown to acquire a greater metabolic cost, placing a higher cardiopulmonary demand on the body, when compared with forward walking at a similar speed. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of retro walking with that of forward walking on C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure (BP) and to understand the influence of independent factors namely systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and BMI on CRP in untrained overweight and obese young adults. Methods: This was a randomised controlled trial whereby 106 participants underwent either retro walking (n = 53) or forward walking (n = 53) treadmill training four times a week for 12 weeks before and after which CRP, BMI, and BP levels were measured. Comparison of the measured values before and after intervention and between the groups was done and influence of BMI and BP on CRP levels was determined. Results: Both groups recorded a significant decrease (p < 0.001) in CRP, BMI, and BP levels postintervention. The participants who underwent retro walking training showed a significantly (p < 0.001) higher decrease in all the outcomes as compared with the forward walking group. C-reactive protein levels were seen to be influenced by BMI and DBP. Conclusion: Retro-walking training leads to greater decrease in CRP, BMI, and BP when compared with forward walking, and CRP levels are influenced by BMI and DBP. Retro walking treadmill training can be used preferentially to bring about reduction in cardiovascular risk factors.

Comparing the effects of retro and forward walking on serum adiponectin levels in obese young adults.

Objectives: Retro walking or backward walking expends greater energy and places less stress on joints compared with forward walking at a similar speed. This study conducted in obese young men was primarily aimed at comparing the effects of backward walking with forward walking on adiponectin levels. The secondary aim was to describe the effects of concomitant factors, namely C-reactive protein, body mass index (BMI), waist to height ratio, and waist to hip ratio, on adiponectin levels in obese young men. Methods: In this randomized comparative study, 102 participants underwent either retro walking or forward walking treadmill training four times a week for 12 weeks before and after which adiponectin, C-reactive protein, BMI, waist to height ratio, and waist to hip ratio were measured. Comparison of the measured values before and after intervention and between the groups was done, and the influence of C-reactive protein, BMI, waist to height ratio, and waist to hip ratio on adiponectin levels was determined. Results: Adiponectin levels were significantly increased (p < 0.001) and C-reactive protein, BMI, waist to height ratio, and waist to hip ratio were significantly decreased (p ≤ 0.001) post-intervention. The participants who underwent retro walking training showed a significantly higher change in C-reactive protein levels, BMI, and waist to hip ratio compared to the forward walking group (p < 0.001). Adiponectin levels were influenced by BMI (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Retro walking training leads to a greater increase in adiponectin and reduction in C-reactive protein, BMI, waist to height ratio, and waist to hip ratio compared to forward walking, and adiponectin levels are influenced by BMI. Retro walking treadmill training can be preferentially used to decrease cardiovascular risk factors.

Production and antioxidant properties of protein hydrolysate from Rastrelliger kanagurta (Indian mackerel).

Fishery waste and by-products are valuable sources of raw material for recovery of antioxidant and bioactive peptides. Due to the increased demand for protein hydrolysates with antioxidative properties by various sectors of consumable food, health care and pharmaceutical industries, the present study focused in the production of fish protein hydrolysate (FPH) by enzymatic digestion from the backbone of Rastrelliger kanagurta (Indian mackerel) and evaluated its antioxidant potential. The observed results of the degree of hydrolysis suggest that the rapid phase of proteolytic cleavage was occurred in the first 60 minutes of incubation and during this period, the rate of hydrolysis was found to be increased with increasing ratio of enzyme to substrate concentration. The result of the antioxidant properties clearly indicates that the 1, 1-diphenyl-2 picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging efficacy of FPH was similar to that of synthetic antioxidants like butylated hydroxyl toluene (BHT). The FPH also exhibited significant reducing power ability and great potential to inhibit lipid peroxidation in equivalence with that of synthetic and natural antioxidants such as BHT and α-tocopherol respectively. The overall findings of the study reveal that, FPH produced by tryptic digestion has considerable amount of bioactive peptides with potent antioxidant properties. The synthesized FPH is a good candidate for further development into a commercial food additive.

Synthesis and in vitro antioxidant functions of protein hydrolysate from backbones of Rastrelliger kanagurta by proteolytic enzymes.

Every year, a huge quantity of fishery wastes and by-products are generated by fish processing industries. These wastes are either underutilized to produce low market value products or dumped leading to environmental issues. Complete utilization of fishery wastes for recovering value added products would be beneficial to the society and individual. The fish protein hydrolysates and derived peptides of fishery resources are widely used as nutritional supplements, functional ingredients, and flavor enhancers in food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries. Antioxidants from fishery resources have attracted the attention of researchers as they are cheaper in cost, easy to derive, and do not have side effects. Thus the present investigation was designed to produce protein hydrolysate by pepsin and papain digestion from the backbones of Rastrelliger kanagurta (Indian mackerel) and evaluate its antioxidant properties through various in vitro assays. The results reveal that both hydrolysates are potent antioxidants, capable of scavenging 46% and 36% of DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2 picrylhydrazyl) and 58.5% and 37.54% of superoxide radicals respectively. The hydrolysates exhibit significant (p < 0.05) reducing power and lipid peroxidation inhibition. Among the two hydrolysates produced, pepsin derived fraction is superior than papain derived fraction in terms of yield, DH (Degree of hydrolysis), and antioxidant activity.