Effect of a 4-week Post-exercise Sauna Bathing on Targeted Gut Microbiota

Effect of a 4-week Post-exercise Sauna Bathing on Targeted Gut Microbiota and Intestinal Barrier Function in Healthy Men: a Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Body temperature fluctuations induced by acute exercise bouts may influence the intestinal barrier with related effects on epithelial permeability, immune responses, and release of metabolites produced by the gut microbiota.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Healthy Males
• Intervention / Treatment: Diagnostic test: The exercise 60 minutes, 3 times per week, on a bicycle ergometer followed by a 30-minute dry Finish sauna treatment.; Diagnostic test: The same exercise training program without the sauna treatments

Detailed Description

Untrained males aged 22±1.5 years were randomly assigned to exercise training (ET) with or without post-exercise sauna treatments (S). Participants in the group ET+S (n=8) exercised 60 minutes, 3 times per week, on a bicycle ergometer followed by a 30-minute dry Finish sauna treatment. The control group (ET, n=7) engaged in the same exercise training program without the sauna treatments. Blood and stool samples were collected before and after the 4-week training program. Blood samples were analysed for the concentration of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and complete blood counts. Stool samples were analysed for pH, quantitative and qualitative measures of targeted bacteria and fungi, zonulin, and secretory immunoglobulin A. This study evaluated the effects of post-exercise sauna bathing in young men undergoing endurance training on gut bacteria inflammation and intestinal barrier function. Investigators hypothesized that sauna bathing applied immediately after a physical training session may impact homeostatic control of the gut microbiota and the function of the intestinal barrier.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 15
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Poland
  • Nowy Sącz, Poland, 33-300
    • Tomasz Cisoń

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 25 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• absence of medical contraindications such as epilepsy,addiction to medicines, alcohol and drugs, cancer, blood clotting disorders,
• no infections in the last 4 weeks prior to the study,
• no injuries in the last 4 weeks prior to the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• the intake of antibiotics, steroids, oral antifungal agents (except for topical antifungals), antiparasitic agents, pre- and/or probiotics,
• history of travel to tropical countries during the last 4 weeks before the study,
• history of adverse responses to sauna bathing.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Diagnostic
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: The group (ET+S ); Participants exercised 60 minutes, 3 times per week, on a bicycle ergometer followed by a 30-minute dry Finish sauna treatment.	Diagnostic test: The exercise 60 minutes, 3 times per week, on a bicycle ergometer followed by a 30-minute dry Finish sauna treatment.; Participants in the group ET+S (n=8) exercised 60 minutes, 3 times per week, on a bicycle ergometer followed by a 30-minute dry Finish sauna treatment.Blood and stool samples were collected before and after the 4-week training program.; Other Names: ET+S
Active Comparator: The group (ET); Participants exercised 60 minutes, 3 times per week	Diagnostic test: The same exercise training program without the sauna treatments; The control group (ET, n=7) engaged in the same exercise training program without the sauna treatments. Blood and stool samples were collected before and after the 4-week training program.; Other Names: ET

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from abundance of Faecalibacterium prausnitzi of the genus Faecalibacterium, Akkermansia muciniphila of the genus Akkermansia, Bifidobacterium spp. of the genus Actinobacteria and Bacteroides spp. of the genus Bacteroidetes at 4 weeks.	Bacterial DNA was isolated from stool samples using the QIAamp Fast DNA Stool Mini Kit (QIAGEN, Danish). The anaerobic bacteria were determined by Real-Time PCR with appropriate primers (ThermoFisher Scientific, USA).The results of quantitative bacterial analysis were converted to the decimal logarithm (Log10). The entire Real-Time PCR methodology was developed and validated by the Institute of Microecology in Herborn, Germany	baseline and immediately after the intervention
Change from the concentrations of sIgA (marker of mucosal immunity), and zonulin (marker of intestinal permeability) in stool at 4 weeks.	Secretory immunoglobulin A concentrations in stool samples were determined with the Secretory IgA test (ImmuChrom GmbH, Heppenheim, Germany). Zonulin concentrations were assessed using the IKD Zonulin ELISA Kit (Immunodiagnostik AG, Bensheim, Germany).	baseline and immediately after the intervention
Change from the concentration of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) at 4 weeks.	The concentration of hsCRP was measured by immunoenzymatic assay using a commercially available kit (DRG International Inc., Springfield Township, NJ, USA).	baseline and immediately after the intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from the white blood cell counts (WBC) and subsets at 4 weeks.	Blood samples (approx. 2 ml) were taken from the antecubital vein.Complete blood count indices were determined by flow cytometry with a Synergy 2 SIAFRT analyser (Bio Tek, Winooski, VT, USA).	baseline and immediately after the intervention
Change feom cardio-respiratory measures at 4 weeks.	Peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak) was assessed with MetaMax 3B analyzer (Cortex, Germany) using a graded exercise test (GXT) with a cycloergometer Cyclus2 (Avantronic, Germany).	baseline and immediately after the intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Poznan University of Physical Education
• Collaborators: David C. Nieman; Tomasz Cisoń; Joanna Szurkowska; Mirosława Gałęcka; Dariusz Sitkowski; Zbigniew Szyguła
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Joanna Karolkiewicz, Prof., Poznan University of Physical Education

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Karolkiewicz J, Nieman DC, Cison T, Szurkowska J, Galecka M, Sitkowski D, Szygula Z. No effects of a 4-week post-exercise sauna bathing on targeted gut microbiota and intestinal barrier function, and hsCRP in healthy men: a pilot randomized controlled trial. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. 2022 Jun 16;14(1):107. doi: 10.1186/s13102-022-00497-z.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 10, 2020
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 20, 2020
• Study Completion (Actual): June 25, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 28, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 11, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): March 14, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 14, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 11, 2022
• Last Verified: March 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: gut microbiota, exercise, sauna bathing, intestinal barrier
• Other Study ID Numbers: PoznanUPhyEd 25.02.2020

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No