Women gain health benefits out of exercise: Study

A long-term study of over 8,764 individuals aged 45-64 years was conducted with the purpose to investigate the effect of physical activity on plasma lipids and lipoproteins in a race-and sex specific manner.

Observations of a long term study
The analysis of this large Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study was carried out by Keri Monda and colleagues at North Carolina University (NCU).

Twelve years of follow-up by researchers found a positive relationship between exercise and cholesterol.

They found that all individuals who increased their exercise by about 180 metabolic units per week (equivalent to an additional hour of mild or 30 minutes of moderate activity per week) exhibited decreased levels of triglycerides and increased levels of the "good" HDL cholesterol.

An interesting aspect demonstrated by the study was that an increase in physical activity was associated with increases in HDL in all strata and decreases in triglycerides among white participants.

In fact physical activity was associated with a decrease in LDL cholesterol in all women, while the association was particularly evident in African- American and menopausal women.

However, the study revealed that total cholesterol levels were only decreased significantly in African-American women.

Speculation by authors
According to the researchers, the novel differential associations could be attributed to the hormonal differences between the sexes, especially considering the extra effects seen post-menopause.

The authors state that the racial differences noted may due to genetic variations, which would require further research.

Since the exercise data was non scientific and assessed by a questionnaire, evaluating participants who were healthy, the investigators state the results cannot be generalized to individuals with diabetes or those on cholesterol-lowering medications.

The findings appear in the August issue of Journal of Lipid Research.