Leptin in overweight postmenopausal women: no relationship with metabolic syndrome X or effect of exercise in addition to diet.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the effect of diet with exercise on serum leptin and whether leptin is associated with the metabolic syndrome X in a high risk population such as overweight postmenopausal women.


METHODS
121 healthy overweight, postmenopausal women (aged 49-58y, body mass index (BMI) 25-42 kg/m2) were randomized to: A low-energy-diet, 4.2 MJ/d (n = 51), low-energy-diet + standardized physical exercise (n=49) or no intervention (control: n=21) for 12 weeks, followed by 6 months follow-up without intervention.


METHODS
S-leptin was measured by Radio Immuno Assay (RIA), body composition and fat distribution by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and anthropometry. Factors associated with the metabolic syndrome X and sex hormones were measured.


RESULTS
S-leptin was two-fold higher than in normal-weight postmenopausal women and S-leptin was normalized after weight loss induced by the 12-week low-energy-diet, without any additive effect of the exercise. Of the factors associated with the metabolic syndrome X, serum-leptin correlated significantly only with sex-hormone-binding-globulin and plasminogen-activator-inhibitor-1, whereas factors associated with obesity per se correlated significantly with leptin. Changes in S-leptin correlated with changes in fat tissue mass during the follow-up, but not during the intervention. S-leptin at baseline did not correlate with either short term or long term weight loss.


CONCLUSIONS
There is no effect of exercise added to diet on S-leptin in overweight postmenopausal women. Leptin does not seem to be associated with the metabolic syndrome X, but rather with fatness. S-leptin is probably associated with both dynamic and static effects of adipose tissue. S-leptin did not predict weight loss.
Christensen
J O
JO
CCBR, Ballerup Byvej, Ballerup, Denmark.
Svendsen
O L
OL
Hassager
C
C
Christiansen
C
C
D001823:Body Composition; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004038:Diet, Reducing; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D020738:Leptin; D016014:Linear Models; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood* / Q000628:therapy; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000032:analysis; D017698:Postmenopause / Q000097:blood*; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin / Q000032:analysis
D020738:Leptin; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; D011506:Proteins; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin