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Leptin and insulin responses to a four-day energy-deficient diet in men with different weight history

International Journal of Obesity volume 27, pages 574–581 (2003)Cite this article

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To assess the leptin responses to a 4-day energy-restricted diet in men with different weight history; high retrospective weight gain was expected to be associated with a small decline in leptin.

DESIGN: Changes in fasting leptin and insulin were measured during a 4-day controlled intervention, in which men with high retrospective weight gain and men who had stable weight consumed 35% of their estimated energy needs.

SUBJECTS: A total of 44 healthy men (age: 31–52 y, BMI: 22.7–39.8 kg/m2) were recruited from a cohort study: 22 men who had gained weight (weight change >1 kg/y) and 22 men whose weight had remained stable (weight change ±0.3 kg/y) between the first (1987–1991) and the second measurement (1993–1997) of the cohort study. The intervention study was carried out in 2001.

RESULTS: After intervention, changes in fasting leptin levels were similar for both groups of retrospective weight gain: −2.2 μlU/ml (95% CI: −2.8; −1.7) and −2.4 μlU/ml (95% CI: −3.2; −1.7) respectively (P=0.69). Proportional changes in fasting leptin levels were different: −43.3% (95% CI: −47.8; −38.4) in the participants whose weight had remained stable (n=22) and −35.2% (95% CI: −42.4; −27.1) in those who had gained weight (n=22)(P<0.05). Analyses in a subgroup of men (n=18), in which the contrast in weight history was more pronounced than in the total group, did not show this difference. A higher proportional decrease in insulin levels was seen in men whose weight remained stable than in those who had gained weight: −35.4% (95% CI: −46.9; −21.3) and –12.8% (95% CI: −28.1; 5.7), respectively. The proportional decrease in leptin was positively associated with the proportional decrease in insulin (r=0.52; P<0.05). The decrease in leptin was positively associated with preintervention body weight (r=0.36; P<0.05), BMI (r=0.44; P<0.05), and waist-circumference (r=0.46; P<0.05).

CONCLUSION: Although we found that the 4-day energy restriction had a smaller effect on the decrease in leptin in men with retrospective weight gain, our study does not show convincing evidence that men who gained weight are less leptin responsive to changes in energy balance than those who were weight stable.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the volunteers who participated in this study; the project steering committee of the Peilstation and MORGEN project for their valuable data; Caroline de Rover, Irma Thus en Ina Hengeveld of the Municipal Health Service Centre in Doetinchem for the blood collections during the intervention study; Els Siebelink for the calculation of the intervention diets, and nutritional supervision during the intervention. Maartje Jansen en Carolien Bouwman for their assistance in the preparation and implementation of the intervention study. This research was supported by the Netherlands Association for Scientific Research (ZON MW).

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  1. J C Seidell

    Present address: Department of Nutrition and Health, Free University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Human Nutrition and Epidemiology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    M Mars, C de Graaf, C P G M de Groot & F J Kok

  2. Department of Chronic Diseases Epidemiology, National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands

    C T M van Rossum & J C Seidell

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  1. M Mars
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  2. C de Graaf
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Correspondence to M Mars.

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Mars, M., de Graaf, C., van Rossum, C. et al. Leptin and insulin responses to a four-day energy-deficient diet in men with different weight history. Int J Obes 27, 574–581 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0802266

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