Background: The magnitude and duration of the serum triacylglycerol response to a fatty meal may be predictive of coronary artery disease. Exercise can modify this aspect of cardiovascular risk but the effective intensity, duration and timing of exercise is uncertain.
Methods: The influence of a single period of walking on the lipaemic response to a high-fat meal (1.2g fat and 71 kj per kilogram body mass) was examined in 12 normolipidaemic young adults (aged 21-33 years, six men and six women). The meal was ingested on two different occasions in a balanced, crossover design. In the control phase, participants rested for 6 h after consuming the meal; in the exercise phase, they walked on a treadmill for 1.5 h at 40% of their maximal oxygen uptake, starting 1.5 h after the meal, and then rested for a further 3 h. Lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured in venous blood taken during the fasted state and at intervals for 6 h after the meal.
Conclusion: The area under the triacylglycerol-time curve was 24 +/- 11% lower during the exercise phase (P < 0.05) than during the control phase because serum triacylglycerol concentrations were lower during recovery from exercise, 3-6 h after the meal.
Conclusion: Prolonged walking starting 1.5 h after the consumption of a fatty meal attenuates postprandial lipaemia in normolipidaemic young adults.