39 research outputs found
Sport all’aria aperta : I benefici sociali, psicologici e fisici che l’ambiente può offrire
No full textIl progresso e la rapida urbanizzazione hanno apportato numerosi benefici sia all’uomo che alla società, al prezzo, tuttavia, della rapida diffusione di svariate patologie come sedentarietà, malattie metaboliche, depressione, problemi di socializzazione. I bilanci economici ne hanno risentito drammaticamente, in primis a livello urbano, quindi a livello nazionale.
L’allarmante crescita globale di queste patologie sembra essere associata alla mancanza di movimento. La presente disamina passa in rassegna i benefici sociali, psicologici e fisici derivanti dalla pratica di sport all’aria aperta. Anche il Comitato Olimpico Internazionale (CIO) sembra aver colto questa urgenza, avendo deliberato, a partire dai Giochi Olimpici di Tokyo 2020, l’ammissione di cinque nuove discipline sportive, quasi tutte praticabili all’aperto. Questa decisione nasce dalla volontà del CIO di avvicinare e coinvolgere più da vicino i giovani alle Olimpiadi, introducendo quelli che sono gli sport più popolari
a livello giovanile negli ultimi anni. I vantaggi nel praticare sport all’aria aperta sono molti, e perciò la promozione di queste attività deve essere debitamente prevista e pianificata da opportune strategie nazionali e internazionali
Outdoor physical activity bears multiple benefits to health and society
No full textINTRODUCTION:
Cutting-edge technologies and the rapid urbanization have led to several advantages for mankind and society. However such benefits have been accompanied with the alarming diffusion of sedentary lifestyle disorders, metabolic diseases, major depression and socialization problems, affecting global economy dramatically. The pandemic expansion of chronic diseases is associated with physical inactivity. During the last decade, numerous cities and organizations worldwide have started to adopt strategies aimed at improving outdoor physical activity levels in city residents.
EVIDENCE ACQUISITION:
A systematic review focusing on the effects of regular outdoors sports and - physical activities across all ages was conducted through multiple databases, according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) standards.
EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS:
Performing outdoor sports and -physical activities may bear social, psychological and physiological benefits. Preventive effects are similarly documented in youth and seniors towards several morbid conditions: vitamin D deficiency, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis and myopia.
CONCLUSIONS:
Giving the beneficial effects of outdoor sports and -physical activities, promotion strategies should be strongly advocated and developed nationally and globally. Likewise, dedicated research areas should inspire guidelines for the promotion of various outdoor activities - a good practice for the social scenario and the healthcare system
Changes in prefrontal cerebral oxygenation and microvascular blood volume in hypoxia and possible association with acute mountain sickness
No full textNew Findings: What is the central question of this study? The role of the cerebral haemodynamic response to either normobaric or hypobaric hypoxia in people susceptible to acute mountain sickness (AMS) is still under debate. Prefrontal cortex near-infrared spectroscopy-derived parameters were monitored in normobaric hypoxia at rest and during moderate-intensity exercise in AMS-prone and non-AMS individuals. What is the main finding and its importance? The AMS-prone individuals did not increase microvascular blood volume and showed lower prefrontal cerebral oxygenation in normobaric hypoxia both at rest and during exercise compared with non-AMS subjects, suggesting that these changes might underpin later development of AMS at altitude. Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in prefrontal cerebral oxygenation and microvascular blood volume during exercise in normobaric hypoxia and to investigate possible associations with the occurrence of acute mountain sickness (AMS) at altitude. Twenty-two healthy individuals (age, 26 ± 4 years; peak oxygen uptake, 42 ± 4 ml kg−1 min−1) were tested in two different conditions: normoxia (NORM) and normobaric hypoxia (fraction of inspired O2 = 0.13; HYPO). Data were collected at rest and during submaximal constant-speed exercise. The peripheral oxyhaemoglobin saturation was measured by finger pulse oximeter. Changes in prefrontal cerebral oxygenation (ΔHbO2), deoxygenation (ΔHHb) and microvascular blood volume (ΔHbtot) were obtained by near-infrared spectroscopy. Within 2 weeks after laboratory testing, subjects rapidly ascended to 3647 m a.s.l., and AMS was evaluated using the Lake Louise scale. Eight subjects were AMS+, whereas 14 were AMS−. During NORM, near-infrared spectroscopy variables did not change from baseline values both at rest and during exercise, with similar results in AMS+ and AMS− subjects. During HYPO, ΔHHb increased to a similar extent in both groups, both at rest and during exercise. The ΔHbO 2 was significantly less in AMS+ compared with AMS− subjects, both at rest [−3.23 ± 5.90 versus 1.44 ± 2.14 μm, P = 0.04, effect size (ES) = 1.1, respectively] and during exercise (−6.56 ± 5.51 versus 0.37 ± 4.36 μm, P < 0.01, ES = 1.2, respectively). Total haemoglobin did not change from baseline, both at rest (−1.67 ± 9.53 μm) and during exercise (−0.96 ± 9.12 μm) in AMS+ subjects, which was significantly different from the AMS− group (5.49 ± 3.99 μm, P = 0.03, ES = 1.0 and 8.17 ± 7.34 μm, P = 0.02, ES = 1.0, respectively). Individuals prone to AMS seem to be unable to increase microvascular blood volume and to maintain oxygenation at the cerebral level during exercise in acute normobaric hypoxia, suggesting that these changes might underpin later development of AMS. </p
Lotta al Doping: An Italian Anti-Doping Campaign
No full textDoping poses a threat to sport world- wide. It puts the user’s health at risk, un- dermines the principle of fair competition and is a demotivating factor for young athletes. Studies have revealed that it is not only affecting professional sports- men and sportswormen but amateur ath- letes are also making increasing use of performance-enhancing drugs. Obviously, anti-doping efforts to date have not been completely effective. For these reasons, the Lotta al Doping (Fight Against Dop- ing) project was created with the aim of causing a cultural shift in young people in Italy by taking anti-doping seminars to high schools, first in a single region and later nation wide. Among the initial find- ings were that young students are unpre- pared to deal with the doping phenomenon but are potential messengers of a fair phi- losophy of sport. This study documents the development of the project, which in the 2016-2017 school year reached more than 11,000 students, and the plans for the fu- ture. These include training a new cadre of expert seminar leaders to deliver seminars to up to 40,000 students in two years and taking the Lotta al Doping model to other countries, possibly in conjunction with the European Athletics I Run CleanTM e-learn- ing platform
Long-Term Effects of Prematurity on Resting Ventilatory Response to Hypercapnia.
No full textManferdelli, Giorgio, Benjamin J. Narang, Mathias Poussel, Damjan Osredkar, Grégoire P. Millet, and Tadej Debevec. Long-term effects of prematurity on resting ventilatory response to hypercapnia. High Alt Med Biol. 22:420-425, 2021. Background: This study investigated the resting ventilatory response to hypercapnia in prematurely born adults. Materials and Methods: Seventeen preterm and fourteen full-term adults were exposed to normoxic hypercapnia (two 5-minute periods at 3% and 6% carbon dioxide [CO 2 ] interspersed by 5-minute in normoxia). Pulmonary ventilation ([Formula: see text]) and end-tidal partial pressure of CO 2 (Petco 2 ) were measured continuously. Results: No difference in lung function was observed between preterm and full-term adults. Petco 2 was lower in preterm than in full-term adults (p 2 , both [Formula: see text] and Petco 2 increased in a similar way in preterm and full-term adults. However, at the end of the 6% CO 2 period, there was a significantly higher [Formula: see text] in preterm compared with full-term adults (30.2 ± 7.5 vs. 23.7 ± 4.5 L/min, p 2 (46.9 ± 2.1 vs. 50.6 ± 2.1 L/min, p = 0.99). Breath frequency was higher in preterm than in full-term adults (17.9 ± 4.0 vs. 12.8 ± 3.5 b/min, p 2 exposure. Conclusions: Although data suggest that prematurity results in resting hypocapnia, the exact underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated. Moreover, preterm adults seem to have increased chemosensitivity to hypercapnia
Decrease in work rate in order to keep a constant heart rate: biomarker of exercise intolerance following a 10-day bed rest
No full textAerobic exercise prescription is often set at specific heart rate (HR) values. Previous studies demonstrated that during exercise carried out at a HR slightly above that corresponding to the gas exchange threshold (GET), work rate (WR) has to decrease in order to maintain HR constant. We hypothesized a greater WR decrease at a fixed HR after simulated microgravity/inactivity (bed rest, BR). Ten male volunteers (23 ± 5 yr) were tested before (PRE) and after (POST) a 10-day horizontal BR and performed on a cycle ergometer 1) incremental exercise; b) 15-min HRCLAMPED exercise, in which WR was continuously adjusted to maintain a constant HR, corresponding to that at 120% of GET determined in PRE; 3) two moderate-intensity constant WR (MOD) exercises. Breath-by-breath O2 uptake (V_ O2), HR, and other variables were determined. After BR, peak V_ O2 (V_ O2peak) and GET significantly decreased, by 10%. During HRCLAMPED (145 ± 11 beats·min1), the decrease in WR needed to maintain a constant HR was greater in POST versus PRE (39 ± 10% vs. 29 ± 14%, P < 0.01). In six subjects the decreased WR switched from the heavy- to the moderate-intensity domain. The decrease in WR during HRCLAMPED, in PRE versus POST, was significantly correlated with the V_ O2peak decrease (R2 = 0.52; P = 0.02). A greater amplitude of the slow component of the HR kinetics was observed during MOD following BR. Exercise at a fixed HR is not associated with a specific WR or WR domain; the problem, affecting exercise evaluation and prescription, is greater after BR. The WR decrease during HRCLAMPED is a biomarker of exercise intolerance after BR. NEW & NOTEWORTHY During a 15-min exercise carried out at a heart rate (HR) slightly above that corresponding to the gas exchange threshold, to keep HR constant work rate significantly decreased; the decrease was more pronounced after a 10-day horizontal bed rest. The work rate decrease at a fixed HR can be considered a systemic biomarker of exercise intolerance during microgravity/inactivity and could also be easily and reliably determined during spaceflights or in patients
Cardiac vagal activity is not a determinant of apnoea tolerance in trained breath‐hold divers
No full textPeripheral impairments of oxidative metabolism after a 10‐day bed rest are upstream of mitochondrial respiration
No full textABSTRACT: In order to identify peripheral biomarkers of impaired oxidative metabolism during exercise following a 10‐day bed rest, 10 males performed an incremental exercise (to determine peak pulmonary V̇O(2) (V̇O(2) p)) and moderate‐intensity exercises, before (PRE) and after (POST) bed rest. Blood flow response was evaluated in the common femoral artery by Eco‐Doppler during 1 min of passive leg movements (PLM). The intramuscular matching between O(2) delivery and O(2) utilization was evaluated by near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Mitochondrial respiration was evaluated ex vivo by high‐resolution respirometry in isolated muscle fibres, and in vivo by NIRS by the evaluation of skeletal muscle V̇O(2) (V̇O(2) m) recovery kinetics. Resting V̇O(2) m was estimated by NIRS. Peak V̇O(2) p was lower in POST vs. PRE. The area under the blood flow vs. time curve during PLM was smaller (P = 0.03) in POST (274 ± 233 mL) vs. PRE (427 ± 291). An increased (P = 0.03) overshoot of muscle deoxygenation during a metabolic transition was identified in POST. Skeletal muscle citrate synthase activity was not different (P = 0.11) in POST (131 ± 16 nmol min(–1) mg(–1)) vs. PRE (138 ± 19). Maximal ADP‐stimulated mitochondrial respiration (66 ± 18 pmol s(–1) mg(–1) (POST) vs. 72 ± 14 (PRE), P = 0.41) was not affected by bed rest. Apparent K (m) for ADP sensitivity of mitochondrial respiration was reduced in POST vs. PRE (P = 0.04). The V̇O(2) m recovery time constant was not different (P = 0.79) in POST (22 ± 6 s) vs. PRE (22 ± 6). Resting V̇O(2) m was reduced by 25% in POST vs. PRE (P = 0.006). Microvascular‐endothelial function was impaired following a 10‐day bed rest, whereas mitochondrial mass and function (both in vivo and ex vivo) were unaffected or slightly enhanced. KEY POINTS: Ten days of horizontal bed rest impaired in vivo oxidative function during exercise. Microvascular impairments were identified by different methods. Mitochondrial mass and mitochondrial function (evaluated both in vivo and ex vivo) were unchanged or even improved (i.e. enhanced mitochondrial sensitivity to submaximal [ADP]). Resting muscle oxygen uptake was significantly lower following bed rest, suggesting that muscle catabolic processes induced by bed rest/inactivity are less energy‐consuming than anabolic ones
