TY - JOUR

T1 - Exercise and fat accumulation in the human liver

AU - Magkos, Faidon

N1 - (Ekstern)

PY - 2010

Y1 - 2010

N2 - Purpose of review: Fat accumulation in the liver is strongly associated with metabolic dysfunction. Regular exercise improves many cardiometabolic risks factors; however, its effect on intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content remains elusive. This article summarizes available data regarding the effects of exercise on IHTG.Recent findings: Several but not all observational studies report negative associations of habitual physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness with IHTG and the prevalence of fatty liver. Aerobic exercise training in combination with hypocaloric diet reduces IHTG by a considerable amount (20-60%), even when weight loss is mild (<5%); hence weight loss per se may not be a critical factor. Longitudinal studies involving exercise training without dietary restriction and no weight loss demonstrate that increased cardiorespiratory fitness and reduced intra-abdominal adiposity are not invariably associated with liver fat depletion, whereas relatively large exercise-induced reductions in IHTG content (20-40%) can occur even in the absence of changes in body weight, body composition, or visceral adipose tissue. Although the majority of studies have examined aerobic training, resistance exercise has also been shown to be inversely associated with the prevalence of fatty liver in humans and effectively reduces IHTG content in animals.Summary: Exercise does hold promise as an effective treatment for hepatic steatosis; this field of research is still in its infancy, and there is much more to be learned.

AB - Purpose of review: Fat accumulation in the liver is strongly associated with metabolic dysfunction. Regular exercise improves many cardiometabolic risks factors; however, its effect on intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content remains elusive. This article summarizes available data regarding the effects of exercise on IHTG.Recent findings: Several but not all observational studies report negative associations of habitual physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness with IHTG and the prevalence of fatty liver. Aerobic exercise training in combination with hypocaloric diet reduces IHTG by a considerable amount (20-60%), even when weight loss is mild (<5%); hence weight loss per se may not be a critical factor. Longitudinal studies involving exercise training without dietary restriction and no weight loss demonstrate that increased cardiorespiratory fitness and reduced intra-abdominal adiposity are not invariably associated with liver fat depletion, whereas relatively large exercise-induced reductions in IHTG content (20-40%) can occur even in the absence of changes in body weight, body composition, or visceral adipose tissue. Although the majority of studies have examined aerobic training, resistance exercise has also been shown to be inversely associated with the prevalence of fatty liver in humans and effectively reduces IHTG content in animals.Summary: Exercise does hold promise as an effective treatment for hepatic steatosis; this field of research is still in its infancy, and there is much more to be learned.

KW - Animals

KW - Body Fat Distribution

KW - Energy Metabolism/physiology

KW - Exercise/physiology

KW - Exercise Therapy

KW - Fatty Liver/metabolism

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Intra-Abdominal Fat/metabolism

KW - Lipid Metabolism/physiology

KW - Liver/metabolism

KW - Longitudinal Studies

KW - Male

KW - Obesity/metabolism

KW - Physical Fitness/physiology

KW - Rodentia

KW - Triglycerides/metabolism

KW - Weight Loss

U2 - 10.1097/MOL.0b013e32833ea912

DO - 10.1097/MOL.0b013e32833ea912

M3 - Review

C2 - 21206340

VL - 21

SP - 507

EP - 517

JO - Current Opinion in Lipidology

JF - Current Opinion in Lipidology

SN - 0957-9672

IS - 6

ER -