Effect of BMI on maximum oxygen uptake of high risk individuals in a population of eastern Uttar Pradesh

Abstract

Background: Herein, we report the effect of body mass index (BMI) on respiratory fitness by measuring maximum oxygen uptake after a short-term aerobic exercise. 20-40 years old healthy male individuals were divided into three categories according to their BMI and asked to perform aerobic exercise on a treadmill. Maximum oxygen uptake (VO₂max) immediately after the exercise was recorded and statistically analyzed. Materials and methods: Thirty individuals of age within the range of 20-40 years were first medically examined to be certain that they did not have any cardiorespiratory complications and their BMI was calculated. Based on their BMI, they were classified into three—normal, overweight and obese groups and subjected to a treadmill exercise as per Bruce Protocol. Recorded data were analyzed and student t-test was performed to test significance of the data. Result: It was observed that the VO₂max decreases as BMI increases. Conclusion:  This study establishes a correlation between maximum oxygen uptake and BMI of individuals that suggests that with increased BMI, VO₂max decreases resulting into a decrease in respiratory fitness level. This trend was found to be consistent among all normal, overweight and obese group individuals. There are numerous reports on respiratory endurance where individuals were subjected to aerobic exercises over a long period of time. Here, we have studied the immediate effect of an aerobic exercise on the maximum oxygen uptake of normal and high risk individuals who were not subjected to long term exercises for respiratory endurance.