Effect of Aerobic Exercise and Dietary Intervention on Visceral and Subcutaneous Adipose tissue in Sedentary Overweight Adults: a Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of aerobic exercise and anti-atherosclerotic diet intervention on visceral adipose tissue (VAT), subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), lipid profiles and insulin (IN) concentration in overweight adults. Method: Thirty-six sedentary overweight adults, age 20 to 25 yr, volunteered as study subjects. Subjects were randomly assigned to: 1) exercise training with American Heart Association anti-atherosclerotic Step 1 (AHA-S1) diet (E+D, n=12), 2) exercise training alone (without the AHA-S1 diet) (EX, n=12), and 3) no-treatment control (CON, n=12). The E+D trained 45 min a day at 70% of VO2peak, 3 days/week and consumed the AHA-S1 diet for 12 weeks, while the EX trained at the identical exercise intensity, duration and frequency without the AHA-S1 diet for 12 weeks. The CON did not engage in exercise training and consumed preferred habitual diet for the same study duration. Study outcome measurements include a magnetic resonance imaging scan for visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), body weight (BW), VO2peak, insulin concentration (IN), and fasting lipids. Results: The E+D showed significant (p<0.05) reduction in VAT, SAT, WT and IN as well as increase in VO2peak and HDL-cholesterol. The EX showed significant (p<0.05) reduction in IN and increase in VO2peak and HDL-Cholesterol. Conclusion: E+D was effective in lowering SAT, VAT, WT and IN as well as enhancing VO2peak and HDL-cholesterol, while EX was effective in lowering IN and enhancing VO2peak and HDL-cholesterol in sedentary overweight adults. Keywords: Aerobic exercise, American Heart Association Step-One diet, MRI, Abdominal and visceral fat, VO2peak, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol,