INTAKE

Obesity is associated with several illnesses, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers. In 2011, 25% of adults were obese in the UK. These figures are set to rise and obesity is predicted to cost the country £50 billion a year by 2050. To help tackle obesity the government are encouraging people to make healthier choices, particularly, promoting healthy eating and active lifestyles.

Energy balance is the difference between the energy we take in, and the energy we use over the course of a day. When the energy we take in is more than the energy we use up, it results in weight gain. To lose weight we can either increase the amount of exercise we do or decrease the amount of food we eat. It has been suggested that there is an interaction between how much exercise we do and how hungry we feel. As exercise is often prescribed as a method for weight management it is important to know in what way it affects how hungry we feel, and if this will lead to weight loss.

The INTAKE study aims to see how exercise influences our hunger. We are looking to recruit healthy males and females aged 18 to 65, with a BMI of less than 40. The study includes four visits; once to measure health and fitness, once to familiarise the study methods (both 90 minutes each), plus two trial days of 8.5 hours, one of which will include 60 minutes of continuous walking or running at a moderate intensity.

Meals and refreshments will be provided during test days and travel expenses covered for all visits. Volunteers will receive feedback on their fitness as well as some aspects of their health.

The INTAKE study is being conducted as part of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)

Leicester-Loughborough Diet, Lifestyle and Physical Activity Biomedical Research Unit (BRU)