Could a pill defeat the need to exercise?

Couch potatoes rejoice - there could soon be 'exercise pills'. Photo / iStock

Pills that mimic the benefits of exercise without any of the hard work could soon be available, scientists believe.

There are at least eight pills under development that aim to replicate some of the effects of physical training on our health.

While an "exercise pill" would no doubt be welcomed by couch potatoes, it could also be useful for those who are unable to exercise due to illness or paralysis.

Scientists from Beijing Sport University in China and the University of British Columbia in Canada reviewed the progress of the potential tablets, which contain different chemicals and work in different ways.

Some encourage the growth of muscle fibre, which improves endurance; others help blood vessels grow in muscles, which makes them work more effectively. Another chemical being looked at, irisin, stimulates the creation of 'good' brown fat, which burns away excess "bad" white fat.

The scientists said exercise pills "have a long road ahead", but that as we learn more about how exercise benefits us on a molecular level, "we will likely gain increased confidence" in creating pills with few side effects but improved efficacy.

Writing in the journal Trends in Psychological Science, they added that "nothing can fully substitute for physical exercise". One effect none of the pills under consideration can replicate is the stretching of blood vessels during exercise, which keeps them elastic and healthy and also triggers the release of a variety of helpful chemicals.

Most of the drugs are still in the early stage of being tested on mice. But two have already been put on the banned anti-doping list for athletes.

- Daily Mail