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Fat oxidation (FAO) during aerobic exercise and whole-body FAO via lipid intake are thought to be important for the maintenance of health, such as the prevention of type 2 diabetes and obesity in sedentary persons in their 40s and 50s. Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) ingestion has been attracting attention. However, the effects of difference of sex and the composition of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs) are unclear, so we examined the effects of these factors on FAO during aerobic exercise. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 3-arm, within-participants crossover trial. FAO during low- to moderate-intensity exercise was compared when octanoate-rich MCTs (C8R), decanoate-rich MCTs (C10R), or carbohydrate (control) was ingested. Three 2-week interventions were separated by two 2-week washout periods. An increase of FAO during exercise after the C8R diet was found in males, but not in females. An increase of carbohydrate oxidation (CAO) and oxygen uptake during exercise after the C10R diet was found in females, but not in males. In a pooled estimate of the effect of MCTs (C8R and C10R) in women and men, FAO increased during exercise. In conclusion, short-term ingestion of MCTs by middle-aged sedentary persons could increase FAO during aerobic exercise compared to carbohydrate ingestion, but the enhancing effect of MCTs on substrate utilization and oxygen uptake might vary, depending on sex and the composition of MCFAs.

Previous studies in recreational and trained athletes aged mostly in their 20s have reported that short‐term ingestion of medium‐chain triacylglycerols (MCT) enhances fat oxidation (FAO) during submaximal exercise. However, whether the FAO‐enhancing effect of MCT with a different composition of medium‐chain fatty acids (MCFA) occurs in older sedentary persons is unclear. The present study investigated the effect of MCT ingestion with different proportions of MCFA in sedentary participants in their 40's and 50's. Participants ingested 0 g of MCT (control), 6 g of octanoic acid‐rich MCT (OAR), or 6 g of decanoic acid‐rich MCT (DAR) for 14 days separated by a 14‐day washout period in random order. Cumulative FAO (Fcv) during submaximal, fixed, and incremental exercise was evaluated at workload from 20 W to the appearance of a ventilation threshold (VT). During the 20 W fixed‐load exercise, Fcv was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in the OAR than in the control. At appearance of VT, intervention effect of power output was significantly higher in the OAR and DAR than in the control. In a subgroup analysis by age, intervention effects of maximal FAO rate and oxygen uptake in the upper age subgroup were higher in the OAR and DAR than in the control. In a pooled analysis with age subgroup and diet, the integrated pooled estimate of Fcv during submaximal exercise was significantly higher in 6 g of MCT ingestion than 0 g ingestion. Our data show that the effect of MCT might differ depending on the age group and the proportion of MCFA, while MCT could enhance FAO during submaximal exercise.

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