High-intensity interval training effects on ultra-processed food consumption in adolescents: a systematic review

Nowadays, within the vigorous intensity activities, there is a huge interest in high-intensity interval training (HIIT), in both research and clinical perspectives. Although HIIT has shown several benefits (e.g. increase in VO2 peak; improving cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition; beneficial effects on cognition and mental health), as far as we know, no systematic review has focused on the HIIT effects on ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption and the relationship between the two remains inconclusive. To fill this gap in the current literature, our review aimed to answer the following question: is HIIT associated with UPF consumption in adolescents? We executed a systematic review that aimed to investigate how HIIT affects UPF consumption. After conducting the search strategy, no articles fitted our inclusion criteria and our systematic review was therefore classified as an empty review. This absence in the literature highlights shows that is an urgent need for additional epidemiological studies focusing on this issue, for example longitudinal studies and controlled trials, in order to show if there is a relationship between HIIT performance and UPF consumption.