Peopel with COPD find it easier to perform high-intensity interval training than conventional training with continuous effort at a moderate intensity, according to a new thesis. Though,both methods have positive effects on both the body and the brain.
Researchers at Umeå University compared people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) where a group cycled at very high intensity for ten six-second intervals with a group that cycled continuously for 20 minutes at normal intensity.
– For those who have COPD, it is indeed especially critically important to keep the body going with exercise in order to improve the quality of life and maintain health. In principle, all exercise is better than no exercise, but exercise programs that are easier to follow increase the possibility of maintaining regular physical activity over time, says Johan Jakobsson, doctoral student at the Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation at Umeå University, in a press release.
The study included 32 people and the results show that both training methods produced positive effects, but the high-intensity interval training led to less shortness of breath.
Despite the much higher training intensity in the interval training, the form of treatment led to less breathlessness than the continuous training. It might very well be seen that both training methods produced positive effects that could be measured during and promptly after the training.Among other things, blood levels of BDNF, a protein that promotes brain health, increased.
most participants preferred the interval training.
In an ongoing international study with 140 participants in Sweden and Belgium, the researchers are now investigating the effects of a developed version of the interval training method, both over a twelve-week period and over two years.
– The preliminary results show good adherence and promising effects. To know more precisely how exercise affects physical function, brain health and long-term disease progression, the study needs to be completed and the results confirmed in further research, says Johan Jakobsson.
To better understand how COPD affects the ability to respond to exercise, lung-healthy control subjects of the same age, gender and activity level are also included in the research. Preliminary data show that people with COPD have reduced fitness status and muscle function, but also reduced cognitive function, compared to the lung-healthy control group, something that shows the need for treatment methods that target the entire impact of the disease.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD, is one of the deadliest public diseases of our time. Physical exercise is a recommended treatment, but people with COPD are often limited by their shortness of breath associated with physical exercise, which reduces the effectiveness of the treatment and the desire to exercise.
Therefore, it is important to find forms of exercise that are effective but do not feel discouraging to participate in.
COPD is also more than a lung disease. The disease is strongly linked to changes outside the lungs, so-called extrapulmonary manifestations. They can include cardiovascular disease, muscle dysfunction and cognitive impairments. Together, they lead to poorer quality of life, reduced physical activity, greater need for care and increased mortality.
There is therefore a great need for treatment methods that target the entire disease picture. Effective treatment methods that cover more than the respiratory system are a major challenge in COPD care.
Thesis: Innovative exercise for extrapulmonary benef