People with metabolic syndrome benefit from whole-body vibration exercise

In a Brazilian study, patients suffering from metabolic syndrome took up an exercise protocol based on whole-body vibration exercise. At the end of the trial, the participants demonstrated improved quality of life due to the increase in their physical activity.

The experiment was conducted by the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). The findings were published in the African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines.

• Participants consisted of volunteers diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. They were divided into a control group, a weekly treatment group, and a bi-weekly treatment group.
• For the first session of whole body vibration exercise, each volunteer sat in front of the platform with feet on the base. The exercise used a frequency of five hertz (Hz).
• Later sessions increased the frequency to 14 Hz. The participants stood at the base of the platform.
• The participants answered a brief World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) survey before the first session. Upon finishing the last session, they answered the same survey. The results were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
• The weekly treatment group reported environment, physical, and psychological improvements. Meanwhile, the bi-weekly group identified physical benefits and enhanced social relationships.

In sum, patients with metabolic syndrome who followed a whole body vibration exercise protocol enjoyed better quality of life. Furthermore, the frequency of the aforementioned exercise altered the affected aspects of their lives.

The full version of this study can be found on this page.

For more articles on the health benefits of exercise for men, visit MensFitnessFocus.com.

Journal Reference

Carvalho-Lima RP, Sá-Caputo DC, Moreira-Marcon E, Dionello C, Paineiras-Domingos LL, Sousa-Gonçalves CR, Morel DS, Frederico EH, Neves MF, Oliveira R, et al. QUALITY OF LIFE OF PATIENTS WITH METABOLIC SYNDROME IS IMPROVED AFTER WHOLE BODY VIBRATION EXERCISES. African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative medicines. 2017;14(4S):59–65. DOI: 10.21010/ajtcam.v14i4s.