90 minutes of moderate-to-moderate exercise immediately after a flu or COVID-19 vaccination can boost antibody responses, a new study suggests.
Iowa State University researchers studied the effects of 90 minutes of outdoor walking, jogging, cycling on a stationary bicycle or other aerobic exercise after injecting two types of influenza vaccine or post-Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in research published in Brain, Behavior and Immunity.
Researchers assigned one group to do 90 minutes of exercise, immediately after immunization and the other group was asked to avoid exercise and go about their daily routine.
The results, as quoted from United Press International, they found an increase in antibody responses in the next four weeks in participants who did 90 minutes of exercise compared to participants who did not exercise on the first day of vaccination. They also found the same results with mice running on a treadmill.
During 90 minutes of exercise, the researchers asked participants to focus on maintaining a pace that kept their heart rate at around 120 to 140 beats per minute.
Vaccines help boost the immune system, including antibodies, which are a line of defense against foreign invaders, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites, the researchers said in a news release about the study.
Researchers also tested whether there would be the same results as 45 minutes of exercise, but found that was not enough.
"Our preliminary results are the first to show a specific amount of time increasing the body's antibody response to the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine and two vaccines for influenza," said Marian Kohut, Professor of Kinesiology at Iowa State, lead author of the study.
Researchers say that 90 minutes of post-immunization exercise is beneficial for people at various fitness levels. To note, half of the people in the study were overweight or obese.
Kohut says that exercise can benefit the immune system as it increases blood and lymph flow to help circulate immune cells. As they move, they are more likely to detect something unfamiliar.
"But more research is needed to answer why and how. There are so many changes that occur when we exercise: metabolism, biochemistry, neuroendocrine, circulatory. So, there may be a combination of factors contributing to the antibody response that we found in our study. ," said Kohut.
Experiments on mice have also shown the type of protein produced during exercise helps produce virus- and T-cell-specific antibodies. Kohut said the research team could conduct follow-up studies to determine whether 60 minutes of exercise is sufficient.