Effects of Sucrose Consumption after High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on the Plasma Levels of Irisin, Insulin, and Glucose in Overweight and Obese Women

Irisin is secreted in response to exercise training, with strong metabolic effects on the muscle and fat tissue. On the other hand, consumption of sugary drinks is one of the main causes of overweight and insulin resistance, which seems to disrupt the secretion of irisin. This study aimed to investigate the effect of sucrose consumption following a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) session on the plasma levels of irisin, insulin, and glucose in overweight and obese women.

Twenty-four overweight and obese women (age: 47.18±2.76 years; BMI: 30.11±2.60 kg/m2) were randomly divided into two sucrose supplementation (n=12) and control (n=12) groups. The HIIT session consisted of six sets of exercise with six repetitions at 50%‌ of maximum aerobic speed; at the end of each set, two minutes of active rest was considered. The sucrose supplementation group received 1.2 g of sucrose per minute of activity in a water solution, and the control group received pure water in a similar bottle. Blood samples were collected before exercise, immediately after exercise, and two hours after exercise. A two-way analysis of variance (time×group) was also used to analyze the data.

There was no significant difference in the irisin levels between the two groups at different intervals (P=0.313). However, significant changes were observed in insulin (P=0.003) and glucose (P=0.022) levels between the two groups at different intervals. Based on the post-hoc test, two hours after exercise, the insulin and glucose levels were significantly higher in the sucrose supplementation group, compared to the control group (P=0.001 and P=0.009, respectively). Also, there was no significant correlation between these indicators (P>0.05).

According to the results, there was no significant inverse correlation between the post-exercise consumption of sugary drinks and decreased irisin levels in obese and overweight women.