For a fitter heart, cut calories by 250 a day

CUTTING just 250 calories a day and moderate exercise is the best way to improve older adults’ heart health, research reveals.

The regime was found to be the most effective way of reducing stiffness of the aorta, which can lead to an increased risk of heart failure and stroke.

And it was better for the heart than exercise alone or undertaking exercise in conjunction with a more restrictive diet.

The study involved 160 sedentary adults with an average age of 69 who had a BMI over 30, which is classed as obese.

Participants were assigned to one of three groups for 20 weeks.

The first group exercised only and stuck to their regular diet. The second exercised but cut 250 calories a day – which roughly amounts to a 50g packet of crisps – while the third exercised but reduced intake by 600 calories. All participants received supervised aerobic exercise training – for example, walking on a treadmill – four days a week for the duration of the study.

The structure and function of the aorta was assessed by measure pulse wave velocity (PWV) – the speed at which blood travels through the body’s main artery – and its distensibility – its ability to expand and contract.

Those who exercised and cut 250 calories had a 21 per cent increase in distensibility, meaning their aorta was better at expanding and contracting. Their PWV also recorded an 8 per cent decrease in the amount of time it took for blood to flow through the aorta.

None of the aortic stiffness measures changed significantly in either the exercise-only group or the exercise plus more intensive

‘Optimising weight loss’

calorie restriction group.

Weight loss was also similar between both calorie-restricted groups – despite one group cutting more than double the amount of calories compared to the other.

Study author Tina Brinkley, from Wake Forest School of Medicine in North Carolina, US, said: ‘These results suggest that combining exercise with modest calorie restriction... likely maximises the benefits on vascular health, while also optimising weight loss and improvements in body composition and body fat distribution.

‘We were surprised to find the group that reduced their calorie intake the most did not have any improvements in aortic stiffness, even though they had similar decreases in body weight and blood pressure as [those] with moderate calorie restriction. That higher-intensity calorie restriction may not be necessary or advised has important implications for weight loss recommendations to improve cardiovascular disease risk in older adults with obesity.’

Figures suggest the majority of Britons – around two-thirds of adults – are overweight or obese.

Long-term studies have indicated that obesity is associated with an increased cardiovascular risk as it increases aortic stiffness.

The findings were published in the journal Circulation.