Chronic exercise reduces illness severity, decreases viral load, and results in greater anti-inflammatory effects than acute exercise during influenza infection.

Abstract in brief

• Chronic exercise significantly decreases the severity of influenza infection, reduces viral load in the lungs, and lowers inflammatory responses compared to no exercise or acute exercise.
• Both chronic and acute exercise lead to reduced levels of inflammatory molecules like IL6, MCP1, and TNF-alpha during infection, with chronic exercise showing more sustained benefits.
• The study suggests that long-term, moderate exercise enhances resistance to infection and mitigates inflammation more effectively than a single bout of exercise.]