title: Normobaric hypoxia training causes more weight loss than normoxia training after a 4-week residential camp for obese young adults.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Intermittent normobaric hypoxia training, an alternative to altitude training for athletes, may be beneficial to treat overweight and obesity. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether normobaric hypoxia training combined with low-caloric diet has the additive effect on weight loss compared with normoxia training in obese young adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-two subjects (age 17-25 years, body mass index >27.5 kg/m(2)) were recruited for a 4-week residential camp of weight loss with low caloric intake, and trained at 60-70% maximal heart rate of aerobics and 40-50% of maximal strength of training. They were randomly assigned to either a normobaric hypoxia (HT, FiO2 = 16.4-14.5 %) or normoxia training group (NT, FiO2 = 21%), and subjects in HT and NT groups experienced weekly 16-h normoxia and 6-h hypoxia or 22-h normoxia training, respectively. Body composition, resting blood pressure (BP) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) were determined before and after the intervention.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Weight loss was found in HT (-6.9 kg or -7.0%, p < 0.01) and NT groups (-4.3 kg or -4.2%, p < 0.01) significantly, and the former lost more weight than the latter (p < 0.01). Hypoxia training improved systolic BP (-7.6%) and mean BP (-7.1%) significantly (p < 0.05) despite having no effect on baPWV.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Four weeks of normobaric hypoxia residential training with low caloric diet has an additive improvement on weight loss. It seems that normobaric hypoxia training might be a promising method to treat obesity.
authors: Faculty of Education, University of Macau, Avenida Padre Tomas Pereira, Taipa, Macao, China, zwkong@umac.mo.
authors: Zhaowei
authors: Z
authors: Kong
authors: Yanpeng
authors: Y
authors: Zang
authors: Yang
authors: Y
authors: Hu
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000503:physiopathology; D055109:Ankle Brachial Index; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D001823:Body Composition / Q000502:physiology; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004038:Diet, Reducing; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006294:Health Resorts; D006801:Humans; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055070:Resistance Training; D059289:Vascular Stiffness / Q000502:physiology; D015431:Weight Loss / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult