Relação entre o padrão de atividade fisica e a variação do peso em indivíduos com obesidade submetidos à restrição energética advinda de alimentos ultraprocessados: análise secundária de um ensaio clínico aleatório

Abstract

Calorie restriction in the diet is a common intervention in the quest for weight loss in overweight individuals and is more effective when combined with physical activity (PA). Ultra-processed foods (UPF) are able to activate brain regions linked to the sensation of reward, leading to excessive calorie intake and PA is capable of attenuating this effect but little is known about its impact on a diet with specific calorie restriction of these foods in individuals with obesity. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of physical activity patterns on weight variation in obese individuals on a diet with specific energy restriction of ultra-processed foods compared to generic energy restriction. This is a secondary analysis of a 6-month randomized clinical trial involving individuals with obesity aged between 19 and 60 years. Participants were allocated to two groups: a) a diet with energy restriction from UPF and b) a diet with generic energy restriction. PA levels were estimated using triaxial accelerometers on the right side of the hip for at least 5 consecutive days before the start of the intervention. Intention-to-treat analyses were carried out using mixed ANOVA. Forty individuals were included. Unlike what was observed in the control group, individuals who underwent energy restriction from UPF and had a longer period of sedentary activity at the beginning of the study showed less weight loss after 6 months of follow-up (R² control = 0.013; R² intervention = 0.282; p = 0.02). Furthermore, energy restriction resulting from UPF in individuals with a greater number of steps (R² control = 0.050; R² intervention = 0.263; p = 0.02), counts per minute (R² control = 0.027; R² intervention = 0.388; p = 0.01) and/or metabolic equivalent of the task (R² control = 0.025; R² intervention = 0.339; p = 0.01) led to greater weight loss after the intervention, an interaction that was contrary to that observed in the group under generic restriction. Thus, in this study, individuals undergoing energy restriction from UPF with a higher percentage of sedentary PA at the start of follow-up lost less weight, a fact not observed in the control group.