Biological Effects of Weight Loss In Older, Obese Women

Summary

Obesity and sedentary lifestyle are associated with physical impairments and biological changes in older adults. Weight loss combined with exercise may reduce inflammation and may improve physical functioning in older adults who are overweight or obese and sedentary. However, the mechanisms by which weight change and exercise influence physical functioning and sarcopenia remain largely understudied. ions). In the WL+E group, participants attended a group-based weight management session plus three supervised exercise sessions each week throughout the entire study. During each exercise session, participants engaged in both aerobic activities (i.e., walking) and lower body resistance training of moderate intensity. The participants in the educational control group attended monthly health education lectures on topics relevant to older adults. It was hypothesized that participants assigned to the WL+E intervention would 1) lose a larger amount of weight, 2) improve their physical function levels, and 3) reduce levels of oxidative stress and inflammation to a greater degree than participants assigned to the Educational Control group. Outcomes are: 1) body weight, 2) walking speed (assessed by 400 meter walk test), 3) the Short Physical Performance Battery \[SPPB\], and 4) knee extension isokinetic strength. The objectives of this pilot study are fourfold: 1) to demonstrate the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of the proposed WL+E intervention in a sample of 40 sedentary, obese older adults with impaired physical functioning; 2) to examine the biological effects of the intervention on inflammatory processes, oxidative stress, apoptosis, sarcopenia, muscle and body composition, muscle strength, and functional performance; 3) to determine whether the expected beneficial effects of the WL+E intervention on physical functioning are mediated by changes in inflammation, apoptosis, and sarcopenia; and 4) to determine the effect size of the WL+E intervention on key outcomes and provide the basis for sample size calculations in the planning of a larger RCT.

Conditions

• Obesity
• Sarcopenia

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Lifestyle Counseling

In the WL+E group, participants attended a group-based weight management session plus three supervised exercise sessions each week.

OTHER

Educational Control

Participants in the educational control group attended monthly health education lectures on topics unrelated to weight loss (e.g., skin protection).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute on Aging (NIA)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Florida

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Stephen D Anton, PhD · University of Florida

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

55 Years

Max Age

79 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2006-09-30

Primary Completion

2009-08-31

Completion

2009-10-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations