The effect of mild heat acclimation on insulin sensitivity and thermophysiology

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: Completed

Sex: Not specified

Target Recruitment: 43

Inclusion Criteria

o Men and women
o Caucasian race
o Age 40-70 years
o BMI between 25 and 35 kg/m2
o Steady dietary habits
o Generally healthy, no medication use that interferes with metabolism. If volunteers need medication (e.g. statin drugs, NSAIDs), it will be reviewed with the dependent physician on individual basis.
o Women after their menopause, meaning no menstrual cycle for at least 24 months and only if they are not under hormonal treatment.

Exclusion Criteria

o Haemoglobin <8.4mmol/L
o No signs of active uncontrolled hypertension, liver of kidney malfunction
o Cardiac problems and cardiovascular diseases, such as angina pectoris, cardiac infarction and arrhythmias
o Any medical condition requiring treatment and/or medication that interferes with investigated parameters. Medical conditions and treatments will be discussed with the dependent physician on individual basis
o Anticoagulation medication
o Unstable body weight (weight gain or loss >3kg in the past three months)
o Participation in another biomedical study within 1 month prior to screening visit
o Volunteers, who do not want to be informed about unexpected medical findings, or do not wish that their treating physician will be informed, cannot participate in this study
o Blood donation three month prior to study and three month after finishing study
o Women will be excluded if their last menstrual cyclus was less than 24 months ago and if they are under hormonal treatment (to alleviate symptoms of the menopause).

Study & Design

Study Type: Interventional

Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
<p>Main study parameter/endpoint<br /><br>o Insulin sensitivity</p><br>

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
<p>Secondary study parameters/endpoints<br /><br>o Insulin signalling and heat shock protein expression in human muscle<br /><br>o Energy expenditure<br /><br>o Total sweat loss and sweat rate<br /><br>o Core body temperature, skin temperature distribution and skin blood flow<br /><br>o Cardiovascular parameters (blood pressure, heart rate and cardiac output)<br /><br>o Subjective perception of the thermal environment<br /><br><br /><br>Other study parameters (if applicable)<br /><br>o Body composition (DEXA)<br /><br>o Glucose tolerance (OGTT)</p><br>