Endurance exercise can cause a decrease in serum ionized calcium (iCa) and increases in parathyroid hormone (PTH) and c-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX), which may be due to Ca loss in sweat.
Purpose: This study aimed to determine whether exercise in a warm environment exaggerates the decrease in iCa and increases in PTH and CTX compared with a cool environment in older adults.
Methods: Twelve women and men 61-78 yr old performed two identical 60-min treadmill bouts at ~75% of maximal heart rate under warm and cool conditions. Serum iCa, PTH, and CTX were measured every 15 min starting 15 min before and continuing for 60 min after exercise. Sweat Ca loss was estimated from sweat volume and sweat Ca concentration.
Results: Sweat volume was low and variable; there were no differences in sweat volume or Ca concentration between conditions. iCa decreased after 15 min of exercise, and the change was similar in both conditions. Increases in PTH (warm: 16.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 6.2, 26.5 pg·mL; cool: 17.3, 95% CI = 8.1, 26.4 pg·mL) and CTX (warm: 0.08, 95% CI = 0.05, 0.11 ng·mL; cool: 0.08, 95% CI = 0.01, 0.16 ng·mL) from before to immediately after exercise were statistically significant and similar between conditions. Adjusting for plasma volume shifts did not change the results.
Conclusion: The increases in PTH and CTX, despite the low sweat volume, suggest that dermal Ca loss is not a major factor in the decrease in iCa and increases in PTH and CTX observed during exercise in older adults.