The cheats' way to lose 100 calories? Run a hot bath: An hour in the tub 'burns more calories than 30 minutes walking'
- An hour in a 40˚C (104F) bath burned an average of 126 calories
- More effective at lowering blood sugar levels than same time cycling
- Passive heating helps people burn calories and reduce sugar spikes
- It is hoped findings may be used to help develop weight loss strategies
Losing weight without exercise is nearly every dieter's dream.
Now a new study has found you can do exactly that simply by running a hot bath.
In fact, a soak in the tub burns an average 126 calories an hour - the equivalent to taking a 25 to 30-minute walk.
It is believed passive heating, such as a bath, increases the rate people burn calories.
Dr Steve
Faulkner, and the team at Loughborough and Leicester Universities, made
the surprising discovery when they were investigating alternatives to
exercise to control type 2 diabetes.
In
the study, they compared having a hot bath to the same period of time
spent cycling and discovered the less strenuous activity had some
surprising benefits.
They found spending an hour in the bath was more effective at lowering blood sugar levels than cycling.
The
experiment involved 10 unfit men who all bathed at 40˚C (104F) while
wearing a glucose monitor to record changes in their blood sugar during
the subsequent 24 hours.
The
same participants also cycled on a different day, at an intensity that
increased their body temperature by 1˚C, to match what happened during
their bathing session.
'We
discovered the participants who bathed had, on average, 10 per cent
lower peak glucose levels in comparison to the exercise, which was
completely unexpected,' Dr Faulkner said.
'The
amount our blood sugar rises after a meal is one of the risk markers
for things like developing type 2 diabetes, so keeping it down can be
good for our health.'
Although
scientists admit it was nowhere near the increase resulting from
exercise, the bath also resulted in an 80 per cent increase in energy
expenditure.
It meant they were burning more than 100 calories while lying, doing nothing.
The research suggests heat can increase the rate people burn calories and may help to reduce blood sugar spikes after eating.
It
is hoped the findings will help weight control and possibly improve
control of blood sugar, which would help people with type 2 diabetes.
Dr
Faulkner added: 'We think the reason is that the bath may encourage the
release of heat shock proteins, which may help lower blood sugar levels
by improving insulin controlled glucose uptake.
'However,
although these findings are interesting, we would always encourage
increased physical activity and exercise as the best way to maintain
good health.'
