Associations of Aerobic Fitness and Maximal Muscular Strength With Metabolites in Young Men

Abstract

IMPORTANCE High physical fitness is associated with a reduction in risk of cardiovascular diseases and death, but the underlying mechanisms are insufficiently understood. OBJECTIVE To determine how aerobic fitness and muscular strength are associated with serum metabolome measures. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This cross-sectional study included Finnish men receiving military refresher training from May 5, 2015, to November 28, 2015, representing partly overlapping groups of individuals with the lowest vs highest aerobic fitness and the lowest vs highest muscular strength. Data analyses were conducted from January 1, 2018, to May 31, 2019. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The associations of aerobic fitness (determined with maximum oxygen consumption in milliliters per minute per kilogram, measured with maximal cycle ergometer test) and muscular strength (determined with a maximal strength test for lower extremities in kilograms) with 66 metabolome measures from fasting serum samples (nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabolomics) were analyzed. RESULTS Participants included 580 Finnish men (mean [SD] age, 26.1 [6.5] years). Including overlap between groups, there were 196 men in the lowest aerobic fitness group and 197 men in the highest aerobic fitness group as well as 196 men in the lowest muscular strength group and 197 men in the highest muscular strength group. Of 66 studied metabolome measures, 48 differed between high vs low aerobic fitness groups, including small very low-density lipoprotein (standardized median

Cross-sectional and prospective associations between aerobic fitness and lipoprotein particle profile in a cohort of Norwegian schoolchildren

“…To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate prospective associations between aerobic fitness and a comprehensive lipoprotein profile in children. A recent cross-sectional study in adults examined associations of the serum metabolome between high and low aerobic fitness groups and showed a favourable pattern of associations with lipoprotein measures in those who were more fit [28]. In supplementary analyses, the authors demonstrated that although the associations of aerobic fitness with a number of individual measures were partly independent of age and body fat percentage, its inclusion as a variable in the regression models accounted for little additional variance compared to body fat percentage and age alone.…”

Ketone body 3-hydroxybutyrate as a biomarker of aggression

“…Alcohol consumption frequency was categorized as none, once a month or less, 2–4 times per month, 2–3 times per week, 4 or more times per week. BMI, physical activity, alcohol use and smoking have been shown to be related to both metabolite levels 26 , 35 – 37 and aggression 38 – 40 . Finally, self-rated general health was dichotomized to either poor health (poor + fair) or good health (good + very good).…”

Physical Activity, Fitness, and Cardiovascular Health

“…Less clear is the degree to which aerobic fitness and muscular strength contribute to mediators of cardiovascular health. In a cross-sectional study of 580 Finnish men by Kujala et al, 8 that assessed the association of push-up capacity with cardiovascular outcomes. Compared with firefighters completing fewer than 10 push-ups, those able to complete more than 40 push-ups had a lower risk of cardiovascular events.…”

“…Activities to maintain muscular strength are important to maintain physical function, and prior studies of individuals with diabetes18 suggest resistance training in combination with aerobic training leads to greater improvements in blood glucose levels than either training alone. However, the study by Kujala et al8 suggests that aerobic fitness is the stronger contributor to markers of cardiovascular health for most individuals.Although the previously discussed studies used detailed assessments of activity and fitness, in clinical care it doesn't always need to be complicated. Prior studies have demonstrated associations of simple measures of fitness (eg, grip strength 19 or 6-minute walk test 20 ) with patient outcomes.…”

“…Six articles in JAMA Network Open have advanced our understanding and offered new insights on these questions (Box). [5][6][7][8][9][10] Physical Activity, Exercise, and Fitness: Are They the Same?…”