Excitement over the exercise pill
The international media is starting to pay attention to drug research that may someday give you some of benefits of exercise without having to exercise. Writers are calling it the 'exercise pill' or the 'exercise in a bottle' drug.
It probably won't be long before the local media picks up on the story, so here are some things you should know before you get too excited – especially those of you who hate to exercise.
Researchers know that exercise causes many beneficial changes in your body. Now they have been able to identify many of these changes and they are developing drugs that can "mimic" them in your body.
One of the chief researchers is Ismail Laher, a professor in the pharmacology and therapeutics department at the University of British Columbia. In an interview with The Washington Post, he stressed that an exercise pill, if it is successful, will not replace exercise but will be of great benefit for people who have difficulty exercising.
He compared it to a vitamin pill. The benefits of fresh fruits and vegetables far outweigh vitamin pills, he explained, but there are people for which this is the only option. The same could be said of exercise and amputees, stroke victims or others who can't run or have difficulty moving.
"I want to be clear that really there is no way to replace routine exercise with an exercise pill," Laher told The Washington Post. "Exercise requires your heart rate to go up, blood to flow faster, and you cannot do that with an exercise pill… but in particular groups, it's the next best thing.