Pill does not mimic exercise, I am back to square one

The Frank Booth at the University of Missouri-Columbia took issue at the new “exercise pill” that essentially improves endurance even in the sedentary, mimicking some of the effects of exercise. Sadly, this pill does not improve strength, aerobic capacity, or even improve your resting heart rate. In fact, taking this pill doesn’t improve your life at all.

Until targeting AMPK-PPARd pathways by drugs is shown to have all the above listed exercise benefits in humans, it is premature to use the term “exercise mimetics” from the very limited observations of the Cell paper, Booth said. Booth’s expectation, based upon his more than 40 years of research experience in exercise and physical inactivity adaptations, is that the drugs in the Cell paper will only partially imitate exercise. In order for any “exercise pill” to counter physical inactivity, the pill must be polygenic, or control many genes at once; therefore the Cell drugs are not likely to provide all of the benefits of comprehensive physical activity.

I think Booth is just jealous. After all, even with the pills I take – normally chocolate covered peanuts – I’ve exhibited many of the signs of extreme exercise including being really tired all the time, increased body mass, and sweating while I eat.