Background: New findings on adipose tissue physiology and obesity-associated inflammation status suggest that modification of the adipokine level can be relevant for the long-term prevention of obesity-associated chronic disease.Objectives: The scope of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of physical exercise in reducing the systemic inflammation related to obesity in children.Methods: We conducted a systematic review with meta-analysis of controlled randomized trials, identified through electronic database search, which investigated the effect of physical exercise, without concomitant dietary intervention, on adiponectin, leptin, and/or other inflammatory markers in children up to age 18 years with a body mass index greater than the 95th percentile for age and sex.Results: Seven trials were included in the meta-analysis, with a total of 250 participants. Compared with the control group without any lifestyle modification, the physical exercise resulted in a reduction in leptin [standardized mean difference (SMD) −1.13; 95% confidence interval (95%CI): −1.89 to −0.37; I2 = 79.9%] and interleukin-6 (SMD −0.84; 95%CI: −1.45 to −0.23, I2 = 0.9%) and an increase in adiponectin plasma concentration (SMD 0.69; 95%CI: 0.02–1.35; I2 = 74.3%).Conclusions: These results indicate that physical exercise improved the inflammatory state in children with obesity. It is unclear whether this effect can reduce the risk of cardiovascular and metabolic disease in adulthood. Clinical trials with a uniform intervention protocol and outcome measurements are required to put our knowledge on adipose tissue biology into a clinical perspective.

The increasing availability of food supplements, aggressive media advertising, and common beliefs that these substances have only positive effects on health and sport performance indicate a need for continuous monitoring of this phenomenon. The aim of this study was to investigate the habits and beliefs related to diet supplementation among medical, health professional, and other university/high school students by means of a cross-sectional anonymous survey online. Among the respondents aware of supplements, 37.4% were taking or had taken them in the past. Food supplement use was more common among university students (in particular, those in health professional graduate courses) than high school students. Individual sport practice, rather than team sport, was associated with higher likelihood of food supplement use. Multivitamins were most commonly used, while weight-loss formulations were the least popular. Strikingly, filling nutrient gaps was statistically not considered the main reason for taking food supplements. Instead, they were used to enhance mental performance or enhance well-being. There was statistical evidence that students not enrolled in health or medical professional studies strongly agreed more often than medical students that taking food supplements prevents illness. These results indicate a striking difference between the evidence-based and personal reasons for food supplement use. Arguably, it calls for an improvement in education about diet supplementation and a change in attitude of health care providers to its implementation.

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Work-related stress represents a relevant public health issue and solution strategies are mandatory. Yoga is a common approach to manage stress and its effectiveness has been extensively confirmed. Therefore, this study aims systematically to review the effectiveness of Yoga interventions carried out at workplace on work-related stress among employees and to assess their impact quantitatively. Springerlink, MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane CENTRAL and PEDro databases were searched. Clinical trials comparing workplace Yoga interventions to control groups, and evaluating perceived stress as outcome measure, were assessed for eligibility. All forms and styles of Yoga were considered for the analysis. Out of 3392 initially identified, 6 studies were included in the meta-analysis; 266 participants practicing Yoga interventions at worksite were compared to 221 subjects in control group. Included studies showed “some concerns” about different domains of source of bias. Quantitative analysis showed an overall effect size of −0.67 [95% confidence interval (CI): −0.86, −0.49] in favor of Yoga intervention in reducing stress outcome measures. Hence, workplace Yoga interventions were more effective when compared to no treatment in work-related stress management. Further high-quality studies are needed to improve the validity of these results and to specify more characteristics of the Yoga intervention, such as style, volume, and frequency.