Scientists in Sweden have discovered six months of regular exercise not only burns away fat cells but actually changes the way one's body stores and processes fat.
The findings appear to have a direct correlation with the processes of genes connected to the storage of fat and the development of obesity, according to the research published recently in the journal PLOS Genetics.
The study said exercise added and removed chemical groups to human DNA in a process known as epigenetic imprinting, or methylation, causing the genes to be switched on or off, according to a report by The Telegraph.
The researchers determined methylation affected more than 7,000 genes as a result of exercise in overweight test subjects. They also found the activity of key genes involved in storing blood stream sugar inside fat cells was notably reduced by the exercise.
"Our study shows the positive effects of exercise, because the epigenetic pattern of genes that affect fat storage in the body changes," said Dr. Charlotte Ling, a diabetes expert at Lund University in Sweden. "We show a general global increase in adipose tissue DNA methylation in response to 6 months exercise."
The study required 31 slightly overweight but otherwise healthy men to undergo three hours of exercise a week for six months - one hour of spinning and two hours of aerobics each week
None of the men reported regular physical activity before the study and many of the men in fact failed to attend all their scheduled exercise classes. Regardless, the men managed an average of 1.8 hours a week, which still proved enough to effect changes in the levels of epigenetic imprinting.
The researchers took tissue samples from the body fat of the research subjects before and after the exercise regime and compared the level of epigenetic imprinting on both. They found 7,663 genes were altered in nearly 18,000 locations.
The new data, the study asserts, show the complex interaction between genes on diseases like obesity.
"The absolute changes in DNA methylation observed in response to the exercise intervention are modest," said Ling. "But the large number of affected sites may in combination potentially contribute to a physiological response."
In a further set of tests the study group also examined how certain genes may affect the storage of fat and showed that methylation of two key genes reduced the amount of free fatty acids, which are associated with type 2 diabetes and could help explain why exercise can reduce the risk of the disease in patients.
The researchers hope targeting genes that are affected by exercise may lead to the development of new targets for drugs in the treatment of obese patients.