Overweight Female Participants Research Articles

Analyzing the Influence of Wine and Beer Drinking, Smoking, and Leisure Time Screen Viewing Activity on Body Weight: A Cross-Sectional Study in Germany.

The increasing global prevalence of overweight and obesity highlights an urgent need to explore modifiable obesogenic factors. This study investigated the impact of lifestyle factors, such as beer and wine drinking, cigarette smoking, and leisure time screen viewing activities, on body weight and the development of obesity. Individual level data were selected from a random sample of 3471 German adults using a two-stage disproportionate random sampling procedure. The empirical analysis employed a two-stage equations system and combined the endogenous treatment effects model with the quantile regression technique. Our estimations showed that the decisions to smoke and consume wine and beer were positively interrelated, especially in women. Frequent beer/wine drinkers of normal weight were found to have a lower BMI in the male subsample. Quantile regression estimates indicated a significant influence of smoking on BMI in both genders, with smokers’ BMI following an upward trend, especially in the upper quantiles of the distribution. Leisure time screen activity was found to have a major impact on females’ BMI. Prolonged television viewing and regular computer gaming had a strong relationship with weight increase in overweight women, whereas internet surfing was inversely correlated with the BMI of normal weight and slightly overweight female participants. Nutrition and health policies should direct individuals toward alternative recreational activities in order to substitute screen usage and reduce sedentary time. This study also raised doubts about the general belief that smokers have a lower body weight. As unhealthy behaviors usually co-occur or cluster together, obesity prevention interventions might also contribute to a decrease in smoking.

Resistance Or Endurance Training Increases Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor Concentrations In Middle Age Females

Evidence continues to develop regarding the positive connection between chronic physical activity and brain health. Brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) works collaboratively with other growth factors to encourage exercise-induced enhancements in cognitive function, neuronal growth, learning, memory, and overall brain health. However, the optimal stimulus and processes by which BDNF is enhanced has not yet been firmly established. PURPOSE: To compare the effects of 16 weeks aerobic (AT) or resistance training (RT) on mRNA concentrations in monocytes and basal plasma BDNF in sedentary middle-aged females. METHODS: Twenty-six untrained overweight female participants (age: 51.1 ± 4.2 years, weight: 69 ± 5.4 kg and BMI: 27.1 ± 2.1 kg/m2) were randomly assigned to AT, RT, or control (C) groups. Blood samples and body composition were collected at baseline and 48-h after the last training session. Participants in the AT and RT groups exercised three times a week for 16-weeks under the supervision of exercise specialists. RESULTS: There were significant group x time interactions (p < 0.05) for both plasma and mRNA concentrations of BDNF which significantly increased in both AT (plasma: 423 ± 13 pg/ml, p < 0.001; mRNA: 1.9 ± 2.9, p < 0.044) and RT (plasma: 610 ± 22.3 pg/ml, p < 0.001; mRNA: 0.6 ± 0.7, p < 0.039) when compared to C. There was also a significant group x time interaction (p < 0.05) for body fat percentage, which was significantly decreased in both AT (-1.8 ± 0.8 %, p < 0.001) and RT (-1.2 ± 1.5 %, p < 0.043) compared to the control group There were no significant differences between AT- and RT-induced improvements. There was a significant correlation between changes in plasma concentrations of BDNF and monocyte mRNA of BDNF (r = 0.506; p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Sixteen weeks of chronic AT or RT increased basal BDNF monocyte mRNA, a key moderator of brain health, expression and plasma concentrations in sedentary middle-aged females. Future research is important to examine the effects of different exercise intensities, durations, frequencies, and exercise types on plasma BDNF concentrations.

Efficacy and Safety of Combined Extracts of Cornus officinalis and Ribes fasciculatum for Body Fat Reduction in Overweight Women.

Obesity is a medical condition that presents excessive fat accumulation with high risk of serious chronic diseases. The aim of this clinical trial is to investigate the anti-obesity effects of Cornus officinalis (CO) and Ribes fasciculatum (RF) on body fat reduction in Korean overweight women. A total of 147 overweight female participants enrolled in double-blinded clinical trial for 12 weeks and 76 participants completed the clinical study. Participants were treated with four CO and RF mixture (COEC; 400 mg per tablet) or four placebo tablets once a day. Obesity associated parameters (body weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, body fat percentage and body fat mass) and safety assessment were analyzed. After 12 weeks of COEC treatment, primary outcomes such as body fat percentage (0.76% vs. 0.01%; p = 0.022) and mass (1.1 kg vs. 0.5 kg; p = 0.049) were significantly decreased. In addition, the results were statistically significant between the COEC and placebo groups, strongly indicated that COEC had anti-obesity effects on overweight women. Secondary outcomes—including body weight, waist and hip circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, body mass index and computed tomography measurement of visceral fat area, subcutaneous fat area, total abdominal fat area and visceral-to-subcutaneous fat ratio—were reduced in COEC-treated group, but no statistical differences were found between the COEC and placebo groups. The safety assessment did not differ between the two groups. These results suggest that treatment of COEC extract reduces body fat percentage and mass in Korean overweight women, indicating it as a protective functional agent for obesity.

Does green tea extract enhance the anti-inflammatory effects of exercise on fat loss?

Green tea extract (GTE) can exert antiobesity and anti-inflammatory effects. Our study determined whether the benefits of GTE are summative with exercise-induced changes in anthropometric indices, and the levels of inflammatory cytokines, adiponectin and irisin in inactive overweight women. Thirty overweight female participants were randomized to 3 groups: endurance training + placebo (ET + P); endurance training + GTE (ET + GTE); and Control (no exercise) + placebo (Control, n = 10). The exercise intervention consisted of an 8-week endurance-training programme of 3 sessions per week (aerobics, aerobic circuit training, and fast walking or jogging at a moderate intensity of 40-59% of the heart rate reserve). The dose of GTE used was 500 mg/day in the form of a green tea capsule. Body weight, body mass index, waist to hip ratio and body fat percentage were decreased in both ET + P and ET + GTE interventions (P < .001 for both interventions). The reduction of anthropometric values in the ET + GTE group was significantly higher than ET + P interventions (P < .001). Both exercise interventions also significantly (P < .001) increased adiponectin (ET + GTE = 5.28 mg/mL [95% confidence interval {CI}, 4.48 to 6.08] and ET + P = 3.34 mg/mL [95% CI, 2.76 to 3.92]) and decreased high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP; ET + GTE = -0.95 mg/L [95% CI, -1.15 to -0.75] and ET + P = -0.35 mg/L [95% CI, -0.46 to -0.24]). Changes in adiponectin and hs-CRP were greater (P < .05) in ET + GTE compared to ET + P. There were no significant differences in irisin, interleukin-6 or tumour necrosis factor-α between the 3 groups (P > .05). GTE improves exercise-induced body composition by further decreasing exercise-induced changes in weight, body mass index, waist to hip ratio and body fat percentage. The combination of GTE and exercise also produced greater changes in anti-inflammatory (increases in adiponectin) and metabolic (decreases in hs-CRP) markers than exercise alone.

The Association Between Weight-teasing And Vigorous Physical Activity

Increased participation in physical activity is an effective strategy to reduce current levels of overweight among female college students. Several factors such as adapting to college lifestyle, difficult access to fitness facilities, and lack of social support affect college students’ participation in physical activity. A history of weight-teasing experiences may also be an important factor. PURPOSE: To determine the relationship between weight-teasing and physical activity participation among female college students, and whether this relationship was mediated by physical activity enjoyment. METHODS: Female college students participated in the study (n = 57). Participants wore accelerometers for seven days and completed the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale and the Perception of Teasing Scale. A body impedance scale was used to assess body composition. Pearson correlation and partial correlations controlling for body fat % were used to assess the association between weight teasing and physical activity participation. Mediation analysis was conducted using the Baron and Kenny 4-step regression model. RESULTS: Weight-teasing was negatively correlated to vigorous physical activity (r= -.23, p < .05). Physical activity enjoyment was negatively associated with the frequency of weight-related teasing (r= -.25, p < .05) and positively associated with vigorous physical activity (r= .48, p < .01). Correlations were not significant after controlling for body fat %. Although physical activity enjoyment was a significant predictor of the frequency of weight-teasing (p < .01) and vigorous physical activity (p < .05), weight-related teasing did not significantly predict vigorous physical activity (p = .08). CONCLUSION: Evidence for the association between weight-teasing and physical activity participation was inconsistent, not significant after controlling for body fat %, and not significant in the mediation analysis, while weight-teasing was associated with enjoyment of physical activity. It is important to design physical activity programs that female college students find enjoyable and safe, especially for overweight female participants. Further investigations about the relationship between weight teasing and physical activity are recommended.

Effect of excessive water intake on body weight, body mass index, body fat, and appetite of overweight female participants.

Objective:Drinking plenty of water is commonly recommended in weight loss regimens; however, very limited scientific evidence is available to justify this. Here we studied the effect of drinking 1.5 L of water, over and above the usual intake on body weight, body mass index (BMI), body fat, and appetite score in overweight female participants.Materials and Methods:The study was done on 50 overweight female participants, who were instructed to drink 500 mL of water, three times a day 30 min before breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The 1.5 L water intake was over and above their daily water intake and was continued for 8 consecutive weeks. Body weight, BMI, body fat, and appetite score was measured pre and post-study; and the values were compared by paired t-test using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 14.0.1.Results:All the parameters tested were lower after 8 weeks: body weight (pre-study 65.86 ± 3.614 kg vs post-study 64.42 ± 3.704 kg; P < 0.01); BMI (pre-study 26.7002 ± 0.9423 vs post-study 26.1224 ± 1.0632; P < 0.01); sum of skinfold thickness (pre-study 79.626 ± 10.385 mm vs post-study 76.578 ± 10.477 mm; P < 0.01); and the appetite score (pre-study 36.880 ± 4.170 vs post-study 34.673 ± 3.845; P < 0.01).Conclusions:Our study establishes the role of drinking 1.5 L of excessive water in weight reduction, body fat reduction, and appetite suppression in overweight female participants.