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Critical Periods of Exercise

Critical Periods of Exercise

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT01041820
Enrollment
20
Registered
2010-01-01
Start date
2009-12-31
Completion date
2011-06-30
Last updated
2019-11-25

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Metabolism

Keywords

exercise, bone marrow adipose tissue, bone mineral density, Children in the intervention condition will complete a supervised physical activity program 3 days/wk for 10 weeks, Control treatment will be provided no intervention, All participants will be instructed not to change their current dietary habits during the study period.

Brief summary

Early childhood (\ 3-7 years of age) is an important window for determining body composition trajectory and may be a critical period for the development of tissue partitioning patterns that influence obesity risk. As adiposity accelerates during this critical period, deposition/ preservation of fat stores may be sustained at the 'expense' of other tissues; i.e. energy homeostasis may be inherently biased toward fat gain. The type and amount of tissue mass accrued in early childhood has implications for metabolic profile, glucose/insulin homeostasis, hormone profile and resting energy expenditure. The interplay between fat and bone deposition represents a physiologic trait enabling the body to choose between shuttling 'energy' towards accrual of a particular tissue. Plausibly the phenotype underlying obesity and diabetes risk may be determined by the differentiation of cell type (adipocyte, osteocyte, etc.) during this early stage of growth and development. In vitro studies demonstrate transdifferentiation under the influence of specific external stimuli, which can switch phenotypes toward other cell lineages. Further, rodent models have demonstrated that exposure to stimuli (exercise) early in life may prevent excess fat mass accrual in adulthood, even when the stimulus is later removed (animals are no longer exercising). Children's early experiences (engagement in physical activity vs. sedentary behavior) may 'environmentally induce' alterations in body composition and predispose individuals to obesity throughout life. Aim 1. To examine the associations between body composition via DXA and objectively-measured physical activity/inactivity. 1. Hypothesis 1.1: There is a positive association between physical activity and bone mass. 2. Hypothesis 1.2: There is a positive association between sedentary behavior and total fat mass. Aim2. To examine the associations between adipose tissue distribution via MRI and objectively-measured physical activity/inactivity. 3. Hypothesis 2.1: There is an inverse association between physical activity and bone marrow adipose tissue. 4. Hypothesis 2.2: There is a positive association between sedentary behavior and bone marrow adipose tissue.

Interventions

BEHAVIORALExercise

Children will be exposed to a 10-week exercise intervention

Sponsors

University of Alabama at Birmingham
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
3 Years to 7 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* children aged 3 to 7 years * healthy, not under the care of a doctor * not taking medications known to alter body composition or metabolism

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frame
Association between exercise and bone marrow adipose tissue in children 3-7 years10 weeks of exercise

Countries

United States

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026