A Meta-analysis of the Effects of Exercise Therapy Applied in Obesity Studies

Kim, Kyoung Bae; Lim, Kang Il; So, Wi Young; Park, Soo Kyoung; Song, Wook

Abstract

BACKGROUND: A meta-analysis was performed to investigate the effect of exercise therapy for Korean obese patients. METHOD: Thirty peer-reviewed journals including obesity and exercise therapy studies published between 2000 and 2006 were included for meta-analysis. These 30 published journals are currently registered by Korean Research Foundation. Effect size and statistics of homogeneity were calculated by SPSS Macro for Meta-Analysis (Ver 11.5).
RESULTS
A high effect size of exercise on body fat and TG; more than a middle effect size on TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C; less than a middle effect size on fat free mass (FFM) and BMI; and a low effect size on body weight were observed. Compared to aerobic exercise alone, combined exercise training has a small effect size of exercise on body weight, BMI and FFM. Also, a single intensity of exercise compared with a gradually increased intensity of exercise has a significant effect size on FFM, LDL-C, and HDL-C. Exercise frequency of more than 4 times per week and exercise duration of more than 12 weeks appeared to have a meaningful effect size of exercise.
CONCLUSION
These findings suggest that exercise therapy for obesity has a significant effect on body fat and blood lipid profiles while exercise therapy has a relatively small effect on weight, BMI, and FFM. Based on the meta-analysis, intensity, time, frequency, and duration of exercise are the factors that need to be properly considered when exercise therapy is applied to obese patients.