Time-restricted eating and exercise training improve HbA1c and body composition in women with overweight/obesity: A randomized controlled trial.

Cell metabolism. 2022;34(10):1457-1471.e4
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Plain language summary

A healthy diet and regular physical activity are primary lifestyle strategies for the prevention and treatment of obesity and its associated conditions. However, poor adherence rates to these strategies limit their effectiveness. Time-restricted eating (TRE) is a popular dietary strategy that emphasises the timing of meals in alignment with diurnal circadian rhythms, permitting ad libitum energy intake during a restricted eating window (8–10 h between the first and last energy intake of the day). The aim of this study was to investigate the isolated and combined effects of TRE and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on glycaemic control and cardiometabolic health outcomes in women with overweight/obesity. This study is a 7-week randomised controlled trial with four parallel groups: TRE (energy intake limited to a %10-h eating window every day), HIIT (three supervised treadmill exercise sessions per week), a combination (TREHIIT), and a control group (CON, no intervention). Participants (n=131) were randomly assigned to one of the four groups. . Results show that 7 weeks of TRE, HIIT, or a combination failed to improve glycaemic control in reproductive-aged women with overweight/obesity. However, the combination of TRE and HIIT significantly reduced glycated haemoglobin levels compared with CON and induced greater losses in body weight, fat mass, and visceral fat area compared with either intervention alone. Isolated TRE resulted in lower nocturnal glucose concentrations compared with CON. Authors conclude that combining TRE with HIIT can rapidly induce several health benefits and decrease metabolic disease risk in women with overweight/obesity. In fact, the high rates of compliance and adherence shown in their findings, highlight the potential of these diet-exercise (TRE and HIIT) protocols to be implemented in clinical practice for treatment and primary prevention of overweight/ obesity.

Abstract

Diet modification and exercise training are primary lifestyle strategies for obesity management, but poor adherence rates limit their effectiveness. Time-restricted eating (TRE) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) improve cardiometabolic health in at-risk individuals, but whether these two interventions combined induce superior improvements in glycemic control than each individual intervention is not known. In this four-armed randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04019860), we determined the isolated and combined effects of 7 weeks of TRE (≤10-h daily eating window, with ad libitum energy intake) and HIIT (three exercise sessions per week), compared with a non-intervention control group, on glycemic control and secondary cardiometabolic outcomes in 131 women (36.2 ± 6.2 years) with overweight/obesity. There were no statistically significant effects after isolated TRE, HIIT, or a combination (TREHIIT) on glucose area under the curve during an oral glucose tolerance test (the primary outcome) compared with the control group (TRE, -26.3 mmol/L; 95% confidence interval [CI], -82.3 to 29.7, p = 0.36; HIIT, -53.8 mmol/L; 95% CI, -109.2 to 1.6, p = 0.057; TREHIIT, -41.3 mmol/L; 95% CI, -96.4 to 13.8, p = 0.14). However, TREHIIT improved HbA1c and induced superior reductions in total and visceral fat mass compared with TRE and HIIT alone. High participant adherence rates suggest that TRE, HIIT, and a combination thereof may be realistic diet-exercise strategies for improving markers of metabolic health in women at risk of cardiometabolic disease.

Lifestyle medicine

Fundamental Clinical Imbalances : Immune and inflammation ; Structural
Patient Centred Factors : Mediators/Obesity/overweight
Environmental Inputs : Diet ; Physical exercise
Personal Lifestyle Factors : Nutrition ; Exercise and movement
Functional Laboratory Testing : Blood

Methodological quality

Jadad score : 3
Allocation concealment : Yes

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