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DENVER | Exercise can reverse the negative effects of physical inactivity on cardiovascular risk, research presented at the American College of Sports Medicine in Denver found.
Exercise physiologist Jennifer Robbins of Duke University in Durham, N.C., led a followup study on a group of participants from Studies of Targeted Risk Reduction Interventions through Defined Exercise (STRRIDE).
In the earlier study of sedentary middle-aged adults, 61 subjects had been randomized to a control group that was instructed not to change dietary or exercise habits for six months. The researchers had expected this inactive group's condition to remain the same throughout the study, and provide a comparison for three other groups who had been randomized to different exercise programs....

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At first glance this report of this research study looks good, as there are lots of numbers and details given. But sadly there is not much information given to aid in the proper interpretation of the results. The very small size of the study needs to be emphasized as well as better information on the state of health of the participants Were these all obese men with pre-existing cardiac problems who also smoked, or were they thin older women at risk for stress fractures? And there is no discussion of injuries sustained during the exercise programs. It is good to see that non-drug treatments are being rigorously evaluated and we would welcome even more of this, however, journalists writing about research on exercise programs should strive for rigour just as if the story pertained to a new drug.

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