The Exercise Training in Youth with Inflammatory Bowel Disease assessed the safety and efficacy of a 16-week exercise training program in youth with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

To do this, we tried to answer the following questions:

• Is 16 weeks of exercise training safe in youth with IBD?
• Do body composition, aerobic fitness, muscle strength, biomarkers of inflammation and perceptions toward physical activity change over the course of 16 weeks of exercise training?
• Will these changes differ between youth with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease?

What did this study involve?

Children in this study completed a 16-week exercise training program. Each training session had a combination of cardio and resistance exercises. Before they started training, we assessed the the child’s fitness, muscle strength, body composition (muscle and fat), and inflammation. After the children finished the training program we re-did all these tests to see if there were improvements. The children also participated in interviews to see what they thought about physical activity and experiences in the exercise training program.

Who was eligible to participate?

Boys and girls in remission from IBD between the ages of 10 and 17 years participated.

What were the results?

We are putting the results together – stay tuned!