Swimming and westernized diet: impact on visceral fat and food preference in young rats

Abstract

High sugar e fat diets are associated with an increase of chronic diseases, making it important to assess the impact of physical exercise intervention. Therefore, the aim is to investigate the effects of consuming a westernized diet and/or engaging in physical exercise on anthropometric, dietary, and biochemical parameters in young female rats. 26 newly weaned female Wistar rats were randomly assigned to a Westernized diet (O) or a standard diet (N). At 22 days of age, swimming was initiated, during 30 minutes per day, 5 times a week for 6 weeks. The animals were divided into the following groups: NI (normocaloric non-exercised), NA (normocaloric, exercised), OI (westernized non-exercised), OA (westernized exercised). As a result, the westernized diet caused a significant increase in triglycerides and total visceral fat despite lower food intake. However, in the OA group, fat was markedly reduced (p<0.0001), such as the control groups. The diet was associated with lower stomach weight in the westernized groups, and in the OA group, a lower liver weight was also observed. The OA group decreased the intake of a hyperglycemic diet and increased the intake of a hyperlipidic diet, while the OI group reduced the intake of a hyperlipidic diet. Thus, swimming for 6 weeks concurrent with the intake of a westernized diet reduces the visceral fat and modifies macronutrient preference in female rats.