Reduced alcohol consumption in mice with access to a running wheel

Photoperiodic modulation of voluntary ethanol intake in C57BL/6 mice

“…On the other hand, wheel-housed animals consumed significantly more water than did mice housed with locked running wheels, leading to a non-significant reduction in ethanol preference. This result is consistent with previous findings that access to running wheels increases water intake when water is the only drinking fluid [1,14], and that alterations in water intake contribute substantially to the effects of running-wheel access on ethanol preference in B6 mice [15]. Finally, it should be noted that the present experiment compared mice housed with either locked or unlocked running wheels, while previous work indicates that even locked wheels can have significant effects on fluid intake when compared to standard caging [15].…”

“…A number of previous studies reported that access to running wheels can reduce ethanol consumption in several rodent species [5,15,27,36,38]. In contrast, we did not detect a significant effect of wheel access on either ethanol intake or ethanol preference.…”

“…As already mentioned, while Millard and Dole [37] reported photoperioddependent alterations in ethanol intake in this strain, we failed to replicate this effect in a recent study [45], albeit using different lighting schedules. Since the animals in our study were housed in runningwheel cages, and since access to running wheels has been shown to influence ethanol intake [5,15,27,36,38], in the present study we maintained half the animals with continuous access to running wheels and half with locked running wheels. In addition to testing for possible photoperiod by running wheel interactions on ethanol intake, this also allowed assessment of circadian adaptation to photoperiod in the wheel-access animals.…”

Exercise as a Potential Treatment for Drug Abuse: Evidence from Preclinical Studies

“…In an early study, McMillan et al (1995) reported that concurrent access to a running wheel decreased ethanol consumption in alcohol-preferring rats under conditions in which consumption of ordinary tap water was increased. Ehringer et al (2009) reported that concurrent access to a running wheel decreased alcohol consumption in laboratory mice using an unlimited-access, two-bottle choice procedure; however, exercise failed to decrease ethanol consumption in a limited-access, drinking-in-the-dark procedure modeling binge-like drinking patterns. In contrast to these results, Werme et al (2002) reported that rats with access to a running wheel during a 1- or 2-week ethanol withdrawal period consumed more ethanol than a group of sedentary control rats when ethanol was reintroduced.…”

Effects of combined exercise and progesterone treatments on cocaine seeking in male and female rats

“…Controlled laboratory studies in humans demonstrated that moderate-intensity aerobic exercise decreased cravings for alcohol (Ussher et al 2004), cigarettes (Daniel et al 2004), and cannabis (Buchowski et al 2011), while brief episodes of isometric (Ussher et al 2006, Ussher et al 2009) and aerobic (Ussher et al 2001, Daniel et al 2004, Williams et al 2011) exercise also alleviated symptoms of tobacco withdrawal. Studies with animals have also revealed promising treatment effects of exercise on drug-motivated behaviors (Smith and Pitts 2011, Kanarek et al 1995, Miller et al 2011, Cosgrove et al 2002, McMillan et al 1995, Ehringer et al 2009, Smith et al 2011, Zlebnik et al 2012). Reinstatement of cocaine seeking precipitated by exposure to cocaine (Zlebnik et al 2010, Smith et al 2012) or cocaine-paired cues (Lynch et al 2010, Smith et al 2012) was attenuated in exercising rats compared to sedentary rats, and exercise over a withdrawal period also decreased subsequent cocaine seeking (Lynch et al 2010).…”