THE EFFECT OF EXERCISE TRAINING ON AN UPPER RESPIRATORY ILLNESS IN SEDENTARY SUBJECTS

Abstract

Fitness enthusiasts commonly question whether they should continue to participate in an exercise program during a upper respiratory illness (URI). The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether exercise training affects the severity and duration of a naturally acquired URI in sedentary subjects. Sedentary (two or less days/week of leisure time or recreational activities for < 30 minutes/day for the previous 3 months) volunteers 18–29 years with an afebrile naturally-acquired URI were alternately assigned to an exercise (EX) group (M = 4, F = 7) or a non-exercise (NEX) group (M = 3, F = 8). All subjects were screened (e.g., asthma, hay fever) by a physician and signed an informed consent form. EX subjects completed thirty minutes of supervised exercise at 70% of target heart rate range for five days of a seven-day period. Every 12 hours all subjects completed a 13-item symptom severity checklist and a physical activity log. Cold symptom scores were obtained until the subjects were asymptomatic. Pilot salivary IgA albumin ratio data was also obtained on 4 EX subjects and 4 NEX subjects on days one, four, and seven of the study. A repeated measures ANOVA procedure used to compare the mean symptom questionnaire values of study subjects for six days following the collection of the baseline symptom data showed no significant differences between the groups. A t-test was not statistically significant for the difference between the EX and NEX groups in the average number of days from baseline before the subjects were asymptomatic. An alpha-corrected independent t test on the salivary data indicated suppressed IgA secretion at all time points. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. These results suggest that moderate exercise training in sedentary subjects with a naturally acquired URI under the conditions of this study design does not alter the overall severity and duration of the illness. The suppressed salivary IgA may indicate an increased risk for a subsequent infection.