Interaction between physical activity and nutrition early in life and their impact on later development

Abstract

It has been rare to find studies of the influence of nutrition on growth that have incorporated careful measurements of physical activity. This paper reviews interactions between physical activity and nutrition in early life and finds that such interactions have a significant influence on growth and later metabolism.Young animals are generally characterized by a high level of spontaneous motor activity that contributes to a high rate of energy turnover in early life. Such activity varies greatly between species and individuals and can be increased by reduced (but not extreme) dietary intake especially of protein, with consequent effects on growth rate (slower), body composition (leaner), eventual body size (smaller), lifespan (longer), cardiac resistance to toxic substances (increased) and changes in body lipids. Most studies have been conducted with laboratory rats but the much smaller literature concerning human beings is also reviewed here.In rats, exercise during pregnancy results in offspring that are smaller and leaner and there are later improvements in cardiac microstructure, cardiac resistance to toxic substances and lower plasma cholesterol and triacylglycerol concentrations.In industrialized countries in recent years, children's fitness, especially of the cardiorespiratory system has not developed at the same pace as body size, or has deteriorated, whereas average body mass index (BMI) and the overall prevalence of obesity have increased. This is partly accounted for by reduced levels of physical activity but there is some evidence that higher intakes of dietary proteins in early life are also implicated. Much recent research has focused on the influence of nutrition in the prenatal and early postnatal period on later health. This review has also underlined the importance of exercise and its interaction with diet beginning with the pregnant mother and continuing through childhood. Development and wider use of simple but reliable methods for the evaluation of physical activity and fitness in young children is now an important priority.

Exercise counteracts fatty liver disease in rats fed on fructose-rich diet

“…The early-training reduced body weight and increased food intake; the late protocol did not show these effects. In another studies, animals which performed early training protocol, had both physiological and morphological alterations, which lead to changes in fat deposition, fat distribution and lipid content in different tissues [17-19]. On the other hand, adult animals showed a consolidated body structure, and the alterations were found only at cell level and lipid content [18,19].…”

“…This may occur due to both the raise in energetic expenditure and the impairment in body weight gain and lipid storage, as well anti-oxidant mechanism improvement [17,18]. Otherwise, exercise training during the adulthood is able in counteracting several deleterious effects caused by occidental diets without changes in body weight and fat-free body mass [18,19]. …”

Treatment and Prevention of Obesity by Exercise in Czech Children

“…Exercise is therefore recommended not only for the prevention of obesity, but also as the most efficient tool for the reduction of BMI and percentage of depot fat, and for the improvement of physical fitness and work performance [2]. A range of studies have shown that early intervention can have a significant effect [3,4,12,13,17]. Fig.…”

“…5) which is often a common characteristic [3,15]. Clearly, the treatment of obesity must be commenced as early as possible [4,11,12,16,17]. An appropriate lifestyle with an adequate diet and physical activity regime is, however, the best way to prevent the development of obesity in early childhood.…”

Translational Science: How experimental research has contributed to the understanding of spontaneous Physical Activity and Energy Homeostasis

“…Rats suckling in large litters and therefore with limited access to food seem to have higher levels of physical activity, even when they have free access to food after weaning. Similarly, rats whose mothers were fed a low-protein diet during pregnancy and lactation (5% protein) were also more active 28 . However, Dúran et al 29 found no alterations in overall activity level (measured by radiotelemetry) in rats with a history of protein malnutrition.…”