Abstract
Summary
Three levels of forced swimming (2%, 4%, and 6% of body weight attached to the tail) were compared to the sedentary state (immersion) in young adult male rats fed a high-fat diet containing 12% of the calories as either cornstarch or a mixture of carbohydrates similar to that found in U.S. “market basket” diets. The more strenuous levels of exercise gave the greatest reduction of serum cholesterol in the rats fed the carbohydrate mixture. However, the most moderate level of exercise (2% loading) led to the lowest body weight, the lowest rate of increase in tissue cholesterol as the rats gained in weight, and the lowest accumulation of material in the aortic tissue that responded to lipophilic staining. Although the dietary carbohydrate source did have an effect on the rate of tissue cholesterol accumulation, this was true only in the sedentary rats.
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