A new study from the University of Virginia has found that intense exercise significantly suppress appetite, especially among women.
The study, published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, examined how exercise intensity affects ghrelin, a hormone responsible for regulating hunger.
“Ghrelin is released from the stomach and crosses the blood-brain barrier, interacting with the hypothalamus, which controls hunger perception,” explained Kara Anderson, the study’s lead author.
Previous studies indicated that exercise could lower ghrelin levels, but this new research highlights that higher intensity workouts are more effective.
The study involved 14 participants—eight men and six women—whose ghrelin levels were measured before and after both moderate and vigorous exercise sessions.
Results showed that female participants exhibited higher total ghrelin and deacylated ghrelin (DAG) levels compared to males.
Notably, both genders experienced reduced DAG levels after vigorous exercise, with women also showing a significant decrease in acylated ghrelin (AG).
“Our results confirmed that higher intensity exercise suppresses hunger more than lower intensity,” Anderson stated. This finding underscores the importance of considering biological sex in exercise and hormonal response studies.
Dr. Mir Ali, a bariatric surgeon not involved in the study, noted, “While the findings are interesting, the small sample size limits definitive conclusions.”
He emphasised the need for larger studies to explore the long-term effects of intense exercise on appetite suppression.
