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  • Letter to the Editor
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Whole-body vibration slows the acquisition of fat in mature female rats: a response to BA Christiansen

International Journal of Obesity volume 33, pages 382–383 (2009)Cite this article

We thank Dr BA Christiansen for his interest and commentary regarding our article that investigated the long-duration effects of whole-body vibration on body composition in adult rats.1 In his letter, Christiansen expresses concern regarding our methodology and suggests a mechanism to explain the results. Specifically, Christiansen argues that: (1) the accelerations imparted to the rats by vibration were excessive and (2) the observed changes were due to pathological stress. We address each of these topics in turn.

Christiansen has performed a valuable service by pointing out that the nominal values for vertical displacement provided by the manufacturer of the vibration plate are most likely to be much greater than those actually experienced by the animals. Christiansen is correct in stating that a platform vibrating with the reported vertical peak-to-peak amplitude of 6 mm at frequencies of 30 and 50 Hz would have peak accelerations of 10.8 G and 30.2 G, respectively. In contrast, according to the manufacturer (Pneumex, Sandpoint, ID, USA), the peak accelerations of the Pneu-Vibe vibration platform in use at Oregon State University are between 1.8 and 3.2 G, depending on the amplitude and frequency settings chosen. The discrepancy between the values calculated by Christiansen and the manufacturer's values is most likely due to the design characteristics of the platform and the influence of extrinsic factors, including applied mass.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition and Exercise Sciences, Bone Research Laboratory, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA. E-mail: gianni.maddalozzo@oregonstate.edu,

    G F Maddalozzo, M J Pavol, K A Philbrick, J J Widrick, U T Iwaniec, C J Rosen & R T Turner

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  1. G F Maddalozzo
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  2. M J Pavol
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  3. K A Philbrick
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  4. J J Widrick
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  5. U T Iwaniec
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  6. C J Rosen
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  7. R T Turner
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Maddalozzo, G., Pavol, M., Philbrick, K. et al. Whole-body vibration slows the acquisition of fat in mature female rats: a response to BA Christiansen. Int J Obes 33, 382–383 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2008.275

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