Impact of apnoea training on metabolic and cardiovascular health in sedentary adults

Apnoea, an underwater practice that involves the voluntary suspension of breathing, has gained popularity among high-performance athletes and individuals seeking to improve their physical health. We sought to evaluate the effects of a 16-week apnoea training program on body composition and metabolic and cardiovascular biomarkers in university teachers. A pretest-post-test quasi-experimental design was used in a group of nine university teachers. The program included five progressive stages of apnoea training. Measurements were taken before and after the intervention, following the WHO STEPS Surveillance Protocol, evaluating anthropometric, cardiovascular, and metabolic variables. Data were analysed using normality and t-student tests for paired samples. It was found that, although there were no significant changes in participants' body composition, substantial reductions in fasting glucose, total cholesterol, NHDL-C, and haematocrit levels were observed after the intervention. These results suggest improvements in glycaemic regulation and lipid profile, contributing to a reduction in cardiovascular risk. These findings underscore the potential of apnoea as an intervention to improve metabolic and cardiovascular health in sedentary populations.