How would you love to eat everything you desire and never sweat again? Does that sound appealing? Scientists are actually working on an exercise pill that could make that possible! This amazing new pill could make us immune to weight gain and give us the benefits of athletic training, all while we sit in front of the television.
This is not some science fiction story but real results coming out of impressive studies. While mice are the only ones able to take advantage of this opportunity right now; who knows, in a few years it could be you! Who wouldn’t want to be fit without effort?
This amazing discovery is the brainchild of Dr. Ronald Evans, a molecular physiologist with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Evans is also a professor at the Salk Institute’s Gene Expression Laboratory. He recently published the results of experiments using two different drugs, AICAR and GW1516.
The first drug, GW1516, was used on exercise-trained mice. GW1516 increased both their running distance and running time by over 65%! GW1516 is a compound currently being used in the development of a drug to raise HDL levels, providing humans with higher levels of good cholesterol.
The drug, AICAR, was administered to the mice that didn’t exercise. Their results were perhaps the most amazing of all! Without ever “breaking a sweat”, these mice showed improvements in both muscle tone and endurance! Their running time increased by 23% and their distance increased by 44%!
The physical composition of the muscles was actually changed by the addition of AICAR! “Sugar-burning fast-twitch fibers” transformed into “fat-burning slow-twitched fibers.” What does that actually mean? The muscles exhibited the same benefits that occur in highly trained athletes such as distance runners and cyclists!
While you might think these studies are especially appealing to the “couch potatoes” of the world, doctors are most excited about the potential benefits to those people who are unable to exercise. Imagine those who are sedentary, not by choice, but due to joint pain, long hospital stays, and other circumstances that keep them from being active.
Imagine all the incredible potential benefits of the new “exercise pill.” Weight loss, while important, wouldn’t be the most anticipated benefit. Think of all the people that could be helped with a decrease in the risk of diabetes and heart disease. Blood sugar levels could be lowered, adipose tissue could be decreased, and muscle wasting could be eradicated.
Even with all of the amazing benefits that these drugs may provide for our overall health, Dr. Evans noted a potentially negative component to the research. The benefits of these drugs may be irresistible to some professional athletes, in an era when having an advantage equates to big bucks. Because of this, detection tests have been developed for use by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
So, will these impressive results transfer from mice to humans, and if so, how long before we can sign up? That information is still pending, but this research is exciting enough that people will be waiting on the edge of their seats for answers.