Effect of Eight weeks Water Exercise with Blood Flow Restriction on Growth Hormone, Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 and Bone Metabolism in Elderly Women

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of water exercise with blood flow restriction (BFR) on the growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels and bone mineral density (BMD) of elderly women. To do so, 30 non-athlete women (age: 60 to 70, weight 72.34 ± 2.5 kg and BMI: 28.8 ± 4.07) participated in the study voluntarily and were randomly divided into three groups of control, water exercise with BFR and water exercise without BFR.  Both training groups performed aerobic exercises with water resistance (eight weeks, three days, one hour). Cuff pressure in the training group with BFR was 110 to 220 mm Hg. Blood samples were taken 24 hours before the first and after the last training session. Statistical test of analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used for data analysis. Findings of the study indicated that two training groups had a significant increase in BMD, IGF-1 and T-score compared to the control group (p≤ 0.05). There was significant increase in the amount of GH only in the BFR group compared to the control group (P≤0.05). Moreover, the result showed significant increases in BMD, GH, IGF-1 and T-score in water exercise with BFR group compared to the water exercise without BFR group (p≤ 0.05). The results of the study indicated water exercise improved the effect of anabolic factors to prevent decreasing bone density, in older women, but water exercise with BFR induced a more beneficial effect on BMD rather than water exercise without BFR. Therefore using water exercise with BFR is recommended for older women.