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Original Research Communication |
1 From the Institute for Nutrition Research, University of Oslo; the Norwegian University of Sport and Physical Education, Oslo; and the Departments of Preventive Cardiology and Clinical Chemistry and the Life Insurance Companies, Institute for Medical Statistics, Ullevål University Hospital, Oslo.
2 Supported by the Research Council of Norway (112770/320), the Throne-Holst Foundation, and the Freia Foundation. 3 Reprints not available. Address correspondence to JE Reseland, Institute for Nutrition Research, University of Oslo, PO Box 1046 Blindern, N-0316 Oslo, Norway. E-mail: j.e.reseland{at}basalmed.uio.no.
| ABSTRACT |
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Objective: We wanted to examine whether changes in dietary energy sources and exercise-mediated energy expenditure, alone or in combination, affect plasma leptin concentrations.
Design: In a randomized, 2 x 2 factorial trial, 186 men with metabolic syndrome were divided into 4 groups: diet, exercise, a combination of diet and exercise, and control. Data on dietary intake, physical fitness, and demographics were collected and plasma leptin concentrations were measured before and after a 1-y intervention period.
Results: Plasma leptin concentrations, body mass index, and fat mass decreased in association with long-term reductions in food intake as well as increased physical activity. By adjusting for either body mass index or fat mass, we observed a highly significant reduction in plasma leptin concentration after both the diet and the exercise interventions. There was no interaction between the interventions, suggesting a direct and additive effect of changes in diet and physical activity on plasma leptin concentrations.
Conclusion: Long-term changes in lifestyle consisting of decreased intake of dietary fat and increased physical activity reduced plasma leptin concentrations in humans beyond the reduction expected as a result of changes in fat mass.
Key Words: Leptin diet exercise metabolic syndrome men weight loss lifestyle
| INTRODUCTION |
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Physical activity is important for long-term regulation of body weight, partly because it increases the resting metabolic rate (15, 16). Weight reduction after physical exercise is correlated with reductions in plasma leptin concentrations in obese middle-aged women (17). However, results regarding the effects of exercise on plasma leptin concentrations, independent of fat mass, are conflicting (1820).
The aim of the present study was to examine whether improvement in the cardiovascular disease risk factor profile induced by changes in lifestyle among sedentary individuals (2123) has any effects on plasma leptin concentrations. We measured plasma leptin concentrations in men with moderately elevated blood pressure and lipid concentrations who were assigned to the single or combined intervention of physical training and diet for 1 y.
| SUBJECTS AND METHODS |
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The trial included 186 men aged (
± SD) 44.9 ± 2.5 y with mildly elevated diastolic blood pressure of 87.9 ± 8.1 mm Hg, plasma HDL-cholesterol concentration of 1.01 ± 0.17 mmol/L, triacylglycerol concentration of 2.28 ± 1.13 mmol/L, total cholesterol concentration of 6.3 ± 0.8 mmol/L, and body mass index (BMI; in kg/m2) of 28.6 ± 3.4 (21). The participants were randomly allocated to the diet group (n = 44), the exercise group (n = 48), the combined diet and exercise group (n = 57), or the control group (n = 37).
Dietary counseling was provided to the participants in the diet group and the combined diet and exercise group at the start of the study and then after 3 and 9 mo. The advice was individually tailored according to dietary habits and risk factor profile. Increased consumption of fish and fish products, vegetables, and fiber-rich products containing complex carbohydrates and reduced intake of saturated fat and cholesterol were recommended.
The exercise program entailed supervised endurance exercise, such as aerobics, circuit training, and fast walking and jogging, 3 times/wk. Each workout lasted 60 min. The exercise group and the combined diet and exercise group were not separated during training. Attendance at each workout was recorded, as was the physical activity some participants did at home. This corresponded to an average of 1.8 h/wk throughout the year. Furthermore, all participants were interviewed at the end of the trial about changes in physical activity habits. The diet group and the control group did not change their physical activity habits during the 1-y period.
Laboratory procedures
Blood samples were collected between 0800 and 1000 after the subjects had fasted overnight and abstained from smoking and after they were recumbent for 10 min. Furthermore, the participants were told to abstain from vigorous exercise for 4 d before blood sampling. Cardiovascular disease risk factors were assessed in each participant before and after the 1-y intervention by means of a standard clinical examination performed by a cardiologist.
Euglobulin clot lysis time was measured in fresh plasma. All other indexes were measured in batches at the end of the trial from samples that had been stored at -70°C (20). Insulin was measured by radioimmunoassay (Linco Research, St Charles, MO) (24). Intraassay CVs were estimated to be 8% for measurements in the range of 0144 pmol, 7% for measurements between 144 and 576 pmol, and 9% for measurements >576 pmol. Interassay CVs were 11%, 14%, and 12% at low, medium, and high (>996 pmol) concentrations, respectively. Other components (glucose, lipids, and factor VII) were quantified by standard methods (21, 22). Plasma leptin was measured by competitive radioimmunoassay (Linco Research) with use of [125I]leptin as a tracer (25). The intraassay CV was 5.5% and the interassay CV was 3.8%.
Blood pressure was measured by using automatic equipment (Vita-Stat blood pressure monitor; VitaStat Medical Services Inc, Bellevue, WA) after the subjects had rested supine for 10 min. Aerobic capacity was estimated directly by using a modified Balke test protocol (26). Body weights were measured by using a Lindel balance scale (Samhald, Klippan, Sweden) while the participants wore only underclothes. Heights were measured at the same time while subjects were not wearing shoes. Percentage body fat was measured by using a body-composition analyzer (Futurex-5000; Futurex Inc, Gaithersburg, MD) based on near-infrared interactance (27). The height, weight, frame size, and activity level of each person were entered into the body-composition analyzer. Subjects were seated with their right forearm supported on a table and optical density levels were measured at the arterial midline of the right biceps. Output, which was programmed by the manufacturer using their standard equation, was recorded as percentage body fat. Intrasubject variation was 12%. By analyzing the change in percentage body fat resulting from the intervention, we minimized the overestimation of body fat in lean subjects and underestimation in obese subjects. Maximal oxygen uptake (
O2max) was measured during a treadmill test in which expired air was analyzed by using an MMC Horizon System (SensorMedics, Yorba Linda, CA; 21).
Dietary assessment was accomplished by using an optical-mark-readable food-frequency questionnaire that has been extensively validated (28, 29). All participants completed the food-frequency questionnaire both before and after the intervention. On the basis of the given frequencies of use and the self-estimated portion sizes (according to given alternatives in household measures), daily intakes of energy and nutrients were calculated by using a food database and software system at the Institute for Nutrition Research, University of Oslo. Cod liver oil was included in the nutrient calculations. To assess compliance with diet, plasma concentrations of fatty acids were also measured at the start and end of the trial. Smoking habits were estimated by measurement of serum thiocyanate concentrations and by self-report.
Statistics
At baseline, the mean plasma leptin concentration was lower in smokers (8.2 ± 4.0 mg/L, n = 63) than in nonsmokers (10.3 ± 7.4 mg/L, n = 122) (P = 0.048). Because neither self-reported smoking status nor plasma thiocyanate concentrations changed significantly during the course of intervention, and because the smokers were randomly distributed in all 4 intervention groups, smokers were not treated differently from nonsmokers within the same intervention group.
Because leptin values were skewed to the left, the values were logarithmically transformed. Fat mass (defined as body weight multiplied by percentage body fat) was skewed to the right and thus transformed values were also used for this variable. Response variables (leptin and fat mass) were defined as the differences between log values at baseline and after 1 y of intervention. Analysis of leptin response adjusted for BMI or fat mass was done by the following per subject calculation:
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Each of the response variables was then used as a dependent variable in a multiple regression model with the design variables of diet (yes or no), exercise (yes or no), and their cross product to test for interaction as regressors. First, a pretest of interaction was performed and if not significant, the interaction term was removed from the model. The model was then rerun with only the 2 main effects to be tested. Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficients were used to assess correlations with plasma leptin concentrations.
The data are presented as means ± SDs. P values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Data were analyzed with use of the computer program SIGMASTAT (version 2.0; Jandel Scientific Software, Erkarthm, Germany) and JMP STATISTIC for Apple Macintosh (version 3.2; SAS Institute Inc, Cary, NC).
| RESULTS |
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Change in the plasma leptin concentration correlated with change in BMI after both types of interventions (r = 0.397 for dietary intervention and r = 0.485 for exercise intervention, P < 0.001 for both). Interestingly, change in the plasma leptin concentration correlated with change in percentage body fat after exercise intervention (r = 0.229, P = 0.02) but not after dietary intervention (r = 0.156). After adjustment for BMI and fat mass, either as percentage fat or in kg body wt, plasma leptin concentrations were reduced after both dietary intervention (P < 0.001 for all adjustments) and exercise intervention (P < 0.001 for BMI and fat mass in kg; P = 0.002 for percentage fat).
There were no significant interactions between the dietary and exercise interventions when calculated as simple responses on a logarithmic scale for leptin (P = 0.32) and fat mass (P = 0.89) or when calculated as responses adjusted for BMI (P = 0.32), percentage fat (P = 0.37), and fat mass (P = 0.35). This finding indicates that both types of interventions had independent effects on plasma leptin concentrations.
Dietary intake
Baseline values for intakes of energy and nutrients and changes after 1 y of intervention are shown in Table 2
. Dietary advice promoted reduced intakes of total energy, protein, fat (including most types of fatty acids), cholesterol, alcohol, and sugar in the diet group and the combined diet and exercise group. The reported reductions in intake of saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in the diet group were not significantly different from those in the combined diet and exercise group. The intake of 2022-carbon n-3 fatty acids increased in both dietary intervention groups. The only significant change in dietary intake in the exercise group was a lower intake of fat as a percentage of total energy intake; intakes of other nutrients remained unchanged in the exercise and control groups during the 1-y intervention period.
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Reductions in intakes of total energy and dietary fat correlated with change in the plasma leptin concentration after both dietary intervention and nonexercise intervention. Reductions in intakes of total energy and carbohydrate, but not change in fat intake, correlated with change in the plasma leptin concentration after exercise intervention (Table 3
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Analysis by 2 x 2 factorial design showed a significant correlation between changes in the plasma concentrations of leptin and insulin (fasting) in all groups (Table 4
). After exercise intervention, changes in the plasma insulin concentration (after a glucose load) and in cholesterol failed to correlate with change in the plasma leptin concentration, in contrast with the finding in the other groups. Change in the plasma concentration of glucose (fasting), the plasma concentration of apolipoprotein A-I, and
O2max correlated with change in the plasma leptin concentration only after exercise intervention. After both dietary and exercise intervention, change in blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) correlated with change in the plasma leptin concentration.
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| DISCUSSION |
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After dietary intervention, leptin, BMI, and fat mass were reduced, and change in the plasma leptin concentration correlated with change in BMI. However, change in the plasma leptin concentration failed to correlate with change in percentage body fat resulting from dietary intervention, suggesting a direct effect of dietary fat on the plasma leptin concentration. Several explanations are possible for this effect of dietary fat. We assumed that there was no time bias in reported dietary intake because there was a 1-y period between each report; thus, participants were unlikely to have remembered the details of their first report when completing the food-frequency questionnaire the second time. During this study period, however, the participants might have been influenced by being participants in the study and may have underestimated their dietary intakes at the end of the intervention. The mechanism by which the accumulation of triacylglycerol influences the expression of leptin in adipose tissue is not known. In humans and in rodents, concentrations of circulating leptin are reduced after fasting and increased after overfeeding (30). During relatively short-term fasting and refeeding experiments, Kolaczynski et al (30) found that BMI values were not markedly altered, suggesting that the leptin concentration may be regulated by factors other than body fat. Leptin concentrations do not change after normal meal consumption (6), but dietary changes over a period of 1 y may modify plasma leptin concentrations and energy balance.
Reductions in intakes of fat and fatty acids in the combined diet and exercise group were similar to those in the diet group (Table 2
); however, no correlation was found between change in the plasma leptin concentration and fat intake (as shown by the nondietary and exercise interventions; Table 3
). This may suggest that increased physical activity overrides the correlation between the plasma leptin concentration and dietary fat intake. Physical activity may reduce leptin messenger RNA expression in rats (31) and lower the abdominal tissue leptin production rate in humans (32). In the present study, we observed a reduction in plasma leptin concentrations, BMI, and fat mass after exercise intervention; however, the effect on leptin concentration was also strongly significant after adjustment for either BMI or fat mass.
Lifestyle changes such as those in this randomized trial were reported previously to improve carbohydrate metabolism, reduce insulin resistance (33), and reduce blood pressure in persons with hypertension (23). Considine (34) hypothesized that changes in energy intake or expenditure may be detected by the adipocyte and thus influence synthesis of leptin via insulin, corticoids, and epinephrine. A training program that improves insulin sensitivity could alter leptin concentrations independently of adipose tissue mass (34). Exercise is often added to energy restriction in the treatment of obesity and it also has preventive effects on the development of diabetes (35, 36). The combined diet and exercise intervention reduced insulin resistance in our patients with metabolic syndrome (33) and we observed a strong correlation between change in the plasma leptin concentration and changes in insulin and glucose. Pasman and Saris (19) studied the effect of long-term exercise training on leptin concentration and concluded that regular exercise allows "resetting" of the leptin concentration so that a lower concentration can be maintained at a certain body fat content. In a study of well-trained runners, short-term exercise was found to have no detectable effect on serum leptin concentrations (18). Physical activity is known to affect sympathetic nerve signals (37). An increase in sympathetic nerve activity promotes down-regulation of plasma leptin concentrations (38), but the dynamics between changes in energy metabolism and leptin is not understood. We conclude that long-term diet and exercise interventions may have direct effects on the plasma leptin concentration beyond the effect expected due to changes in fat mass.
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