Sarah Lessard, Virginia Tech - Keto Diet, Exercise and High Blood Sugar

On Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Week: Can a diet help you get more benefits from exercising?Sarah Lessard, associate professor, looks into this.Faculty Bio:Identifying mechanisms to optimize the therapeutic benefits of exerciseWhy do some people gain fewer health benefits from exercise than others?Increased aerobic exercise capacity is one of the key health benefits of aerobic training. Some individuals, however, are “exercise resistant” and fail to improve fitness and other key health markers with training. People with metabolic diseases such as Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes have blunted improvements in aerobic capacity with training. The identification of high and low responders to exercise training can be a valuable tool in determining which mechanisms are most important in mediating the health benefits of exercise — information that is critical to identifying therapies to improve the health benefits of exercise.Transcript:Exercise is widely recognized as one of the best ways to improve health. It helps people lose weight, build muscle, and strengthen the heart. It also improves how the body takes in and uses oxygen for energy, one of the strongest predictors of health and longevity.But for people with high blood sugar, those benefits can be harder to achieve. Even when they exercise regularly, their muscles may not improve their ability to use oxygen efficiently. High blood sugar also increases the risk of heart and kidney disease and can prevent muscles from responding to exercise the way they should.Our research explored whether diet might help restore those exercise benefits. In a study using mice with hyperglycemia, we tested a ketogenic diet — a high-fat, very low-carbohydrate diet that shifts the body toward burning fat instead of sugar.After one week on the ketogenic diet, the mice’s blood sugar returned to normal levels. Over time, their muscles also began to change. The diet caused remodeling in the muscles, making them more oxidative and improving how they responded to aerobic exercise.The mice also developed more slow-twitch muscle fibers, which support endurance. Their bodies became more efficient at using oxygen, a key sign of improved aerobic capacity.These findings suggest that lowering blood sugar may help restore the body’s ability to adapt to exercise, highlighting how diet and exercise can work together to shape metabolic health.Read More:[Virginia Tech] - Keto diet could unlock the effects of exercise for people with high blood sugar This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.academicminute.org