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Certain obese men can increase their levels
of "good" cholesterol through regular
extended endurance exercise, a new study has found.
The study results are encouraging because
men of normal weight and low triglyceride levels (a type of
fat associated with heart disease) and low levels of "good"
(HDL) cholesterol may find it difficult to increase their
levels of HDL cholesterol. Low HDL levels can increase the
chances of heart disease.
Investigators studied 200 men who exercised
for 50 minutes a day, approximately three times per week.
The men were divided into four groups based on triglyceride
and HDL levels.
All four groups experienced small
reductions in body fat during the training period,
with the greatest losses seen in men with high triglycerides
and low HDL cholesterol.
Men whose only abnormality was a low
HDL level showed no improvement in their HDL levels, the researchers
report. However, men with high triglycerides and low HDL showed
modest (about
5%) improvements in their HDL levels.
Arteriosclerosis,
Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology July 2001;21:1226-1232, 1097-1098
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