Long-term endurance exercise found to alter more than 1000 genes

Spotted this summary: https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/long-term-endurance-exercise-alter-genes-metabolic-health/ (which refers to this study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211124720307890)

Quote:

Finally, the researchers compared the data gathered to prior research examining gene activity changes in type 2 diabetics following short-term six to 12 month training regimes. The results suggested even a short exercise program in subjects with pre-existing metabolic disease was enough to substantially alter their skeletal muscle genetic profiles to more closely resemble that seen in the long-term endurance trainers.

“This suggests that even short training programs of 6–12 months are enough to positively influence the health of people suffering from metabolic disorders,” says last author on the study, Carl Johan Sundberg. “The study identifies important ‘exercise-responsive’ genes that may play a role in metabolic diseases.”

The research adds a vital new piece to the puzzle of how exercise improves health. While we know exercise is clearly beneficial to a person’s health, the physiological mechanisms underpinning that association are not well understood, and the long-term metabolic effects of exercise even less so.