Endothelial Function Improves After Exercise

ST. LOUIS— Postprandial endothelial function was improved by endurance exercise performed approximately 17 hours earlier in a recent study (Am J Clinc Nutr. 2008;88(1):51-57). Thirteen healthy men and women, 48 ± 17 years old, were studied on two occasions: after 48 hours with no exercise and 17 hours after a 60-minute bout of endurance exercise. During each trial, brachial artery flow mediated dilation (FMD) was used to assess endothelial function before and after the ingestion of a candy bar and soft drink. FMD decreased significantly after food ingestion in both trials. However, prior exercise shifted the entire FMD curve upward (P=0.0002), which resulted in a greater area under the curve for FMD than did no exercise (P=0.01). Prior exercise shifted the glucose and insulin curves downward (P= 0.05 and P= 0.0007, respectively) and resulted in a significantly greater insulin sensitivity index than did no exercise (P=0.01). TBARS did not differ significantly between trials.