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Showing posts from January, 2011

Resveratrol Increases Lipolysis and Reduces Lipogenesis in Mature Adipocytes

If you are (as I hope) an avid reader and daily visitor of the SuppVersity, you probably remember Friday's news on the " Side Effects of Polyphenol Supplementation ". I just hope you did not throw away all your supplements immediately, because eventually the question of side effects is always relative. If, for example, you are a sumo competitor and in dire need of gaining mass, no matter what. It would be an unwelcome side-effect of resveratrol supplementation not to gain or even to lose body fat... A report ( Baile. 2011 ), recently published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences does now confirm, what supplement companies have been promising all along: the right dose of supplemental resveratrol will limit fat gain and improve lipolysis in a mouse model: Treatment of mice with resveratrol alone was shown to improve resistance to weight gain caused by a high-fat diet. Moreover, dietary supplementation of aged ovariectomized rats with a combination o

1.200 IU Vitamin D Won't Raise 25OH-D Levels Enough to See Beneficial Effects on Markers of Cardiovascular Health

In the course of the last weeks, I have refrained from posting each of the 1001 studies on vitamin D that appear in the myriad of medical magazines each month. It is simply too much, mostly very irrelevant information. A recent study by Maki et al. ( Maki. 2011 ) is yet interesting insofar, as it provides some insight into the amounts of supplemental vitamin D one would probably need to see some cardiovascular benefits. After supplementing the diets of their subjects with either a standard multi-vitamin or the multi-vitamin + 1,200IU of vitamin D for 8 weeks, the researcers measured serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in subjects with high waist circumference and found: There was a significant difference in mean change for 25(OH)D between the MVM and MVM+D treatment groups ( − 1.2 ± 2.5 nmol/l vs. 11.7 ± 3.0 nmol/l, respectively; P  = 0.003). Vitamin D 1,200 IU/day did not increase 25(OH)D to a desirable level ( ≥ 75 nmol/l) in

Another Good Reason to Take Creatine: Creatine Helps with Exercise Induced Arterial Stiffness

If there is one supplement out there on the fitness market that is really worth each cent you spend on it, it is probably creatine monohydrate . In a recent study, scientists from the Florida State University ( Sanchez-Gonzalez. 2011 ) report on the positive effects, of creatine supplementation (creatine monohydrate @ 2x5g /day for 3 weeks) on arterial stiffness and hemodynamics in 16 healthy male subjects: Compared with the Pl group, the Cr group had attenuated (P\0.05) increases in SBP [systolic blood pressure] at PE5 [5 minutes post exercise] (Pl 14.0 ± 2.5, Cr 5.6 ± 2.3 mmHg), HR [heart rate] at both P5 (Pl 28 ± 4 vs. Cr 16 ± 2 beats/min) and PE15 (Pl 21 ± 3, Cr 11 ± 2 beats/min) and rate pressure product at P5 (Pl 45.8 ± 6.4, Cr 24.8 ± 2.2) and P15 (Pl 34.2 ± 5.0, Cr 15.9 ± 6.0). Compared with the Pl group, the Cr group had suppressed increases in baPWV [brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity] at PE5 (Pl 1.5 ± 0.4, Cr-0.1 ± 0.4 m/s) and PE15 (Pl 1.1 ± 0.2, Cr -0.3 ± 0.3 m/s)

Unexpected Side Effects of Flavonoid Supplementation: Do You have to Re-Evaluate the Use of EGCG, Grape Seed Extract & Co?

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It is pretty exciting to see how scientists find new beneficial constituents in common foods on a daily basis. A group of these phytoprotectants is called "flavonoids". Respective extracts from grapes, green tea, etc. have been shown to exhibit various health benefits and supplement companies make a fortune selling them to health-conscious costumers. The question however remains: Did nature really intend us to consume these trace nutrients in such significant amounts ? Table 1: Potential beneficial and adverse effect of flavonoid supplements. ( Egert. 2011 ) Scientists from the Department of Nutrition and Food Science of the University in Bonn, Germany ( Egert. 2011 ), have now taken a closer look at possible side-effects of a selection of these phytoprotectants. Among the possible interaction and health concerns the scientists have found were Flavonoid - trace element interactions - reduced the uptake of iron (and possible other trace elements) Flavonoid - vitamin i

Melatonin, Magnesium and Zinc for a Healthy Night of High Quality Sleep

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Sleeping disorders are very common in our hectic society and sleeping pills are among the no.1 drugs (ab-)used by the general public. At least in a very restricted group of subjects, the combination of melatonin , magnesium and zinc has now proven a very viable and certainly more natural alternative to the highly advertised "chemical maces" of the big pharma companies. Figure 1: Effects of treatment of the primary end point. Mean Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) (marker) are reported at baseline and at 8 weeks for the melatonin, magnesium, and zinc (left) and placebo (right) participants, together with their standard deviations (whiskers). (Figure 2 from Rondanelli. 2011 ) In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial set in along-term care facility in Pavia, Italy, researchers from the University of Pavia ( Rondanelli. 2011 ) found a combination of 5 mg melatonin , 225 mg magnesium , and 11.25 mg zinc , mixed with 100 g of pear pulp taken 1 hour before bed

Ginkgo, Ginseng, Green Tea: Only one of the G's may be worth Supplementing

In the most recent episode of their supplement review (which is usually very critical) the British Journal of Sports Medicine ( BJSM Review. Part 17 ) has a look at studies on the ergogenic potential of ginkgo , ginseng and green tea , all of which are heavily advertised for their beneficial effects on health, long jeopardy and mental, as well as physical performance. In the case of Ginkgo an Ginseng, the studies that have been considered in this review provide very inconclusive evidence for and against their use as ergogenics or medical plants. With regards to the underlying reasons for the discrepancies which have been reported, the reviewers argument that both, the origin, as well as the processing techniques may have influenced the efficiency of ginkgo and ginseng products. green tea , on the other hand, "shows some promise" - regular readers of this review series will know that this is already a great praise! Although evidence is limited, green tea extract,

Resveratrol Fails to Ameliorate inflammatory response and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness After a Marathon

Resveratrol , an antioxidant polyphenol from the skin of red grapes, has now been around for quite a while and as it was in the case of almost every other antioxidant which was hailed as a powerful panaceum (e.g. vitamin E ) it slowly transpires that the real life value of resveratrol may well fall short of the expectations its potency in (mostly) in vitro studies rose among scientists and laymen alike. For some of you it may yet still come as a surprise that the results of a double placebo-controlled randomised trial conducted at the London Marathon 2010 ( Laupheimer. 2011 ) fall short of the expectations the colorful advertisements and cited abstracts from in vitro studies may raise in many half-informed customers: There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of changes occurring between pre and post-tests for WBC [white blood cell count], CRP [C reactive protein] or VAS [a measure of muscle soreness] (p=0.857, 0.629 and

And again: Vitamin E Supplementation has no Effect on All Cause Mortality

I suppose, only few of you will be surprised to read this: A very recent review by scientists from the University of Kentucky ( Abner. 2011 ) confirmed the results of previous reviews of the available literature: Based on the present meta-analysis, supplementation with vitamin E appears to have no effect on allcause mortality at doses up to  5,500 IU/d. The scientists had compiled a selection of randomized, controlled trials published between 1988 and 2009 that investigated the treatment effect of vitamin E supplementation in adults for at least one year. What they got was a data pool comprising 246,371 subjects and 29,295 all-cause deaths with an overall risk ratio of 1.00 that was independent of whether or not the subjects received supplementary vitamin E. On a side note: Instead of another review of the literature, I would have liked to see a study investigating the differential effects of the various forms of tocopherols and tocotrienols , of which I assume that the interact

High Protein Diet Safe for Bones! Acid Load due to Meat Protein does not Compromise Calcium Metabolism.

Reading the caption of this post, some of you may rightly ask themselves: "Why does he even mention this? Of course, meat is safe - meat is natural and eating meat is what man is made for!" So, if you already knew all that, you can stop reading now. If, however, you still belong to the misguided brotherhood of the followers of the holy food pyramid with your "healthy" grains, pasta and cereals at the bottom, you may be interested in the results from an older scientific paper I just came across while posting an answer to a forum post of someone who was concerned that his bones will become brittle if he increases his protein intake beyond the 0.8g/kg body weight barrier. In November 2010, Cao & Nilsen ( Cao. 2010 ) published a review which analyzed the outcome of studies that investigated the effect of the purported renal acid load resulting from a high protein intake (above the current Recommended Dietary Allowance of 0.8 g protein/kg body weight) on increas

Beta-Hydroxy-Beta Methylbutyrate Strikes Back: HMB Increases GH and IGF-1 at the Expense of Insulin Resistance

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"HMB" - do you remember these three letters? If you have been around the supplement world in the early 2000s, you probably will. Beta-hydroxy-beta methylbutyrate ( HMβ ) is a metabolite of leucine which has been advertised to enhance exercise performance, reduce fatigue and promote muscle gains. Nothing of that has been substantiated within larger human studies, though; and thus HMB a former star among the amino acid supplements has almost been forgotten. Now, a recent study from Brazil ( Gerlinger-Romero. 2011 ) provides data suggesting that HMB may in effect raise the content of pituitary GH mRNA and growth hormone [GH], as well as hepatic IGF-I mRNA and serum IGF-I concentrations. It was observed that the HMβ treatment induced an increase in GH mRNA by 65% (P < 0.001) and in GH content by 20% (P < 0.05) compared to control group. The IGF-I mRNA expression in liver, as well as the serum IGF-I concentration was also significantly increased in the HMβ-treated

Drink Your Milk! Scientists Unlock the Health Secrets of the White Elixir of Life

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Arnold said "Milk is for babies", yet recent studies showed that chocolate milk is among the most effective post-workout drinks you can consume and whey proteins are a stable not only of almost every bodybuilder's diet regimens. In a recent review, a group of Irish scientists ( Mills. 2011 ) attempt to summarize all the available information on the "ever-accumulating range of bioactivities associated with milk substituents"; and the sheer size of the paper underlines that there probably is much more to milk than Arnold would have imagined. Table 1: Milk-derived bioactive peptides in commercially available functional foods and ingredients ( Mills. 2011 ) Table 1 (truncated from Mills. 2011 ) shows a summary of the most important components of milk and their proclaimed beneficial health effects. So, don't let anyone tell you milk was for babies, only ;-) Edit : I think it is noteworthy to say that (of course) this review was supported by the milk indus

Role of Magnesium in Blood Sugar Management

In a recent study ( Guerrero-Romero. 2011 ) a group of scientists from the Research Group on Diabetes and Chronic Illnesses from Durango, Mexico, investigated the effect of oral supplementation with magnesium chloride (MgCl(2) ) on "the ability of beta-cells to compensate for variations in insulin sensitivity in [52; placebo + treatment] non-diabetic individual". Obviously, we hear it over and over that 'magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the human body', it is vital, etc., etc. - studies showing real life benefits from oral supplementation are however relatively scarce. Unfortunately, there is one caveat with this study, as well. Guerrero-Romero et al. deliberately selected only those subjects with "significant [magnesium levels ≤0·70 mM/L] hypomagnesaemia, i.e. low magnesium levels. There were no serious adverse events or side effects because of MgCl(2) or placebo. At the beginning of the study, the AUC of the HMbCF was similar in both group

Reactive Oxygen Specimen (ROS) Trigger Muscle Hypertrophy via IGF-1 Signaling

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I have touched on the "usefulness" of oxidation, only yesterday. Now, a very recent study appears to confirm the notion that a controlled amount of inflammation is necessary in order to achieve metabolic and muscular adaptations. Figure 1: Eesult of the quantitative analysis of myotube diameter after IGF-I and NAC treatment ( Handayaningsih. 2011 ) Scientists from  Division of Diabetes and Endocrinology and Division of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine published a paper ( Handayaningsih. 2011 ) describing an investigation into the role of Reactive Oxygen Specimen (ROS) in the IGF1-signaling pathway. In this study N-Acetyl-Cystein (NAC), commonly used by recreational athletes as an "ergogenic" aid, blunted myocyte response to IGF1 and thus inhibited muscle hypertophy (cf. Figure 1): While treatment with H2O2 significantly enhanced IGF-I-induced phosphorylation of the IGF-I receptor (IGF-IR), IGF-IR phosphoryla

N3-PUFA Beneficial Only When Combined With Antioxidants

All of you who have been following this blog, lately, will have noticed that I tend to be skeptic whether fish oil and other PUFA supplements are recommendable without certain reservations. A recent study by Filaire et al. ( Filaire. 2011 ) seems to support the view that poly-unsaturated fatty acids increase the potential for oxidative damage and should thus be combined with appropriate amounts of antioxidants to "compensate" this effect. Over a period of 6 weeks the researchers supplemented a group of 36 judoists with either 600 mg EPA and 400 mg DHA per day or the same amount of long chain polyunsaturated fatty [LCPUFA] acids plus 30 mg vitamin E, 60 mg vitamin C and 6 mg β-carotene and measured resting and exercise-induced lipid peroxidation in their subjects. Here are the results: At T (1) [before supplementation], there were no significant differences among treatment groups with respect to lipid peroxidation, lag phase, and levels of α-tocopherol or retinol. The

Tinospora Cordifolia as in LG Sciences' Natadrol is a Potent Antioxidant and Metal Chelator

This is only a small news-item, but unfortunately scientific background info on commercially available supplements is pretty rare - so here we go... Scientists from India ( Bhawya. 2010 ) investigated the antioxidant potential of various extracts of Tinospora Cordifolia (the primary ingredient in LG Sciences Test Booster Natadrol ) and found that ... Methanolic, ethanolic and water extracts showed significant antioxidant potential compared to other solvents and also possess metal chelation and reducing power activity . In the DPPH radical scavenging activity, methanolic extract  (98.13%)  showed high antioxidant potency, ethanolic  extract (90.34%) was a potent scavenger of superoxide radical. At the same time, both methanolic (97.08%) and ethanolic extracts  (95.21%)  inhibited hydroxyl radical along with other extracts. The metal chelation  in methanolic  (60.62%), ethanolic  (57.62%),   aqueous extracts  (40.89%)  and reducing of ferrous ions was significant found increasing in

Calcium + Vitamin D for Breakfast Increase Dietarily Induced Thermogenesis and Fatty Acid Oxidation

Ever since the first studies suggested beneficial effects of dairy on weight loss, there have been a lot of trials that investigated the role of (supplemental) calcium in these contexts (mostly with discouraging results). A very recent study by Wendy and Soares ( Wendy. 2011 ) took a very similar approach, but added vitamin D to the equation. In their study, the scientists fed their 11 subjects (aged (mean ± SEM) 54 ± 1.2 y and BMI 31 ± 2.4 kg/m ) a meal that was either high (HCT) or low (LCT) in vitamin D and calcium and measured diet induced thermogenesis (DIT) , fat oxidation rates (FOR) , serum leptin, subjective feelings of hunger/satiety hourly over a period of 8 hours. The results were far from earth-shattering; they could however solve the mystery of why most people find it easier to lose weight on a diet that is generally rich in dairy and calcium + vitamin D rich foods: HCT resulted in lesser suppression of ΔFOR (p=0.02) and a significantly greater DIT (p=0.01) . Furthe

6 Weeks of 400mcg Chromium per Day Improve Insulin Sensitivity and Lean Body Mass in Obese Children over Lifestyle Intervention Alone

Chromium , once hyped as a next generation anti-diabetes and lean mass agent, has disappeared from the best-selling lists of supplement vendors. Too few studies were able to confirm the encouraging results from rodent experiments. Possible toxicity issues put the icing on the cake and people just stopped buying it. A very recent study published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry ( Kim .2010 ) took another look at whether chromium , which irrefutably is a vital co-factor in insulin production and secretion, may not yet be beneficial for patients with pre-diabetes. The scientists supplemented a group of 25 obese children (age 9-12y) who participated in a 6-week diet and lifestyle intervention with 400mcg chromium chlorid a day and monitored changes in body mass index (BMI; kg/m 2 ), BMI Z -score, waist circumference, body composition and fasting plasma glucose. The results were positive- body composition and insulin sensitivity improved: [...] children who received chromium

The Great Feast: Overeating With a Macronutrient Emphasis on Carbs Suppresses GH Levels Via Hyperinsulinemia

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An interesting study done by scientists from the Department of Internal Medicine (A.L.B.) at the University of Michigan ( Cornfold. 2011 ) reveals a direct influence of overeating (+75% over maintenance) and the associated rise in insulin on growth hormone levels. Cornfold et al. found that GH levels of seven (formerly ;-) healthy, nonobese men (body mass index, 24 ± 1 kg/m 2 ; age, 25 ± 1 yr) " declined nearly 80% by d 3 of overeating ". Figure 1: Mean plasma GH concentration every 20 min for 24 h before overeating (baseline), ond3of overeating, and at the end of the 2-wk overeating period. Inset, The average plasma GH concentration at baseline, d 3, and 2 wk of overeating. In view of some people's "eat all that cannot run away fast enough" mass gain diets, it is noteworthy that the decline in GH concentration is not an initial reaction. As it is shown in figure 1, GH response stayed way below baseline for the whole 2 weeks the subjects ate their st

Lower Protein to Carb Ratio Impairs Akt/TOR Signaling Pathway after Fasting in Rainbow Trout

"Boy, you need your carbs post workout!" This cornerstone of conventional bodybuilding wisdom is crumbling and a new study, if it had been done in humans, not in rainbow trout, would potentially refute this myth once and for all - at least, if one follows the popular (but false) assumption that it is because you are in a carb depleted or overall fasted state after a strenuous workouts. A group of European scientists ( Seiliez. 2011 ) investigated the effect of diets with different protein to carbohydrate ratios on the Akt/TOR Signaling Pathway after fasting for 48h. What they found contradicts conventional wisdom: Activation of the Akt/TOR signaling pathway by refeeding was severely impaired by decreasing the proteins/carbohydrates ratio . Similarly, post-prandial regulation of several genes related to glucose ( Glut4 , glucose-6-phosphatase isoform 1), lipid (fatty acid synthase, ATP-citrate lyase, sterol responsive element binding protein, carnitine palmitoyltrans

Rat Study: High Carb Diet Induces Hepatic Steatosis and Increases Heart Fat by 43%

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For a large part of the 1980s and 1990s fats have been considered the "source of all evil". Now, it is our carbohydrate consumption which is held to be responsible for diabetes, obesity and the other ugly faces of "the metabolic syndrom". A recent study by a group of scientists from Sao Paulo ( Haubert. 2010 ) seems to confirm this "revised" hypothesis. Over a period of 21 days, the scientists fed a group of rats (experimental) a 70% carbohydrate diet with astonishing or rather shocking results (cf. table 1)   Within three weeks the rats developed a fatty liver and their heart fat mass increased by 43%. While the scientists did not provide much information about the overall underlying mechanism of these changes, they emphasize the pronounced decline in tissue vitamin E produced by the high carb consumption. In how far additional vitamin E may have prevented some of the fat accumulation yet remains unknown and would warrant further investigation.

AKG as in Arginine Alpha-Ketoglutarate for GI Health

For many of us, our gut is like our feet. We ignore it as long as it appears to be working properly. I think, I do not have to tell you that this is a mistake. Just like you cannot run without healthy feed, you cannot digest and use all the good food and supplements you consume without a healthy gut. This is why you should be interested in the findings of a recent review by scientists from the Hubei key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Wuhan 430023, China ( Hou. 2011 ). The scientists evaluation of related studies lead them to conclude that the conversion of Alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG), which is an intermediate of the Krebs cycle and bridges amino acid metabolism with glucose oxidation, into glutamate in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and animals is of particular interest in view of overall gastric functioning, "including regulation of cell function, neurotransmission, and gastric emptying". Translating the basic research into practice, results o

Tired of Being Obese? Walk Like a Bodybuilder! Study Confirms Effectivity of Incline Treadmill-Walking

Are you obese or just generally concerned about your joint health? Forget jogging and ramp up your treadmill. According to the results of a study published in the latest issue of the Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine ( MSSE. 2011 ) slow walking on an incline produces a similar metabolic workload as running while concomitantly reducing loading rates on lower extremities: Metabolic rates were similar across trials and were moderate intensity (48.5-59.8% of VO2max). Walking slower uphill significantly reduced loading rates and lower extremity net muscle moments compared to faster level walking. Peak knee extension and adduction moments were reduced by ~ 19% and 26%, respectively, when subjects walked up a 6[degrees] incline at 0.75m/s vs. level walking at 1.50m/s. So, ramp up your incline and walk, but please do me a favor and do not hold on to the handle in front of you , like some of the overweight mamas at my gym do. This will not only reduce the work-intensity

L-Carnitine Works! At Least if it's L-Carnitine L-Tartrate.

Initially, carnitine was considered the super-supplement for both, the athlete seeking the ergogenic edge, as well as for the obese trying to shed unhealthy body fat. Surprisingly, however, study after study showed no to little effect on exercise performance and/or fat loss. Ultimately, it became clear that, even at very high doses, only very little of the orally delivered l-carnitine actually makes it to the muscle. Consequently, its effects on performance and body composition where negligible. Now, a very recent study by Wall et. al. ( Wall. 2011 ) found that adding a transporter, in this case l-tartrate , to the molecule does not only help to increase muscle carnitine levels, it eventually produces exactly those effects on exercise performance and substrate metabolism one would have expected from l-carnitine supplementation in the first place. The scientists had their 14 healthy male volunteers ingest either 80 g of CHO (Control) or 2 g of L-carnitine L-tartrate and

Creatine + Caffeine = No-Go? Still Nothing but a Myth

You probably have heard both that a) caffeine would negate the ergogenic effects of creatine loading and b) that the latter is nothing but one of those gym-myths which just won't disappear. A recent study by scientists from the Department of Recreational Sports Management , Yu Da University, Miaoli, Taiwan ( Lee. 2011 ) provides practical evidence that "the no caffeine when on creatine"-advice is garbage. The scientists investigated the effects of acute caffeine ingestion on intermittent high-intensity sprint performance after 5 days of creatine loading and found no detrimental effects of 0.6mg/kg caffeine on the creatine induced increase in exercise performance. What's more the ergogenic effect of caffeine added to that of creatine , so that ... [...] the mean and peak power observed in the CRE + CAF were significantly higher than those found in the CON during Sprints 1 and 3; and the CRE + CAF showed significantly higher mean and peak power than that in th

Protein Supplementation in Heavy Resistance Training: "A case for whey protein"

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"Protein builds muscle!" < this is a sentence you will read pretty often in the advertisements - sorry, I meant "scientific explanations" supplement producers print onto their product labels to make you buy their newest "invention". In the end, however, it mostly comes down to a blend of different forms of whey protein with added vitamins minerals and digestive enzymes. But do you really need all that? Do you even need whey? Table 1: Approximate Essential Amino Acid Profile of Various Protein Sources A group of scientists from Finland ( Hulmi. 2010 ) would probably say "YES!". In a very recent review they come to conclusions which sound pretty similar to what you can read all over the web: Most, but not all studies have shown that supplementation of whey alone or with carbohydrates immediately after and possibly before and during resistance exercise can enhance the muscle hypertrophy response to resistance training in healthy adults. Su

Low Iron Still an Issue in Professional Athletes

Despite the fact that most of you are probably weekend-warriors or recreational athletes, I suspect that some of you expose their bodies to similar stressors as professional athletes do. Therefore, I assume you'd be interested in a recent study coming from German scientists ( Reinke. 2011 ) who found that "although recuperation seems to allow a certain recovery of iron storage, particularly in athletes with initially low ferritin levels, this retrieval was insufficient to fully normalise reduced iron levels." The scientists had previously examined the iron metabolism in 20 elite rowing athletes and 10 professional soccer players at the end of a competitive season, after recuperation and during pre-season training and found: At the end of season, 27% of all athletes had absolute ID [iron deficiency] and 70% showed functional ID. Absolute iron depletion was not generally restored after recuperation and observed at all time points in 14% of the athletes. Although a

Taurine Decreases Oxidative Stress After Eccentric Exercise in Rats: Human Equivalent Dose ca. 3.5g-4g

Regular readers of the SuppVersity will certainly be familiar with the sulfur-amino-acid taurine and its various benefits on exercise performance, insulin sensitivity and weight management. So, it may not come as a surprise that a recent study conducted by young scientists from the Postgraduate Program in Health Sciences at the Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense in Brazil found that 14-days "preloading" with 300mg/kg taurine per day reduced the exercise induced increase in oxidative stress in rats. Taurine supplementation was found to decrease superoxide radical production, CK [creatine kinase], lipoperoxidation and carbonylation levels and increased total thiol content in skeletal muscle, but it did not affect antioxidant enzyme activity after EE [excentric exercise]. It is rather speculative, whether standard dose equivalent calculations apply to one situation or another - IF they did, you could probably get away with as little as 3.5-4.0g of taurine per day

2g Spirulina à Day Enhance Quadriceps Strength in Trained and Untrained Individuals

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Hitherto, most of you may have considered algae such as spirulina mostly as a source of anti-oxidants or a pretty useless weight-loss supplement. What you probably did not know is that taking 2g of spirulina each day might noticeably increase your strength gains in the gym. Scientists from the Department of Sports Medicine and Physiotherapy at the Guru Nanak Dev University , in Punjab, India supplemented the diet of a group of 40 healthy volunteers (20 trained, 20 untrained) with 2g of spirulina per day and measured peak force, average force and fatigue index of dominant quadriceps muscle before and after 8 week of supplementation. Table 1: Comparisons of effect of spirulina supplementation on peak force, average force, and fatigue index of dominant quadriceps muscle in supplemented and placebo trained and untrained groups. Values are shown as mean values with standard deviation The data in table 1 shows the astonishing results: While supplementation did not improve time to e

Even Individuals on a "Healthy" Diet May Benefit from Supplemental Fiber

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Fiber has been advertised for years as a universal health promoter. It curves appetite, reduces cholesterol and improves digestion - but is it really necessary to supplement with additional fiber, if your intake in fibrous veggies etc. is already high? A recent study by scientists from Australia ( Pal. 2010 ) suggests that it may not be necessary, yet beneficial. Figure 1: Changes in body weight (A); BMI (B); % body fat (C) and waist circumference (D). From left to right: Control, FIB, HLT, HLT-FIB Studying a cohort of 72 overweight and obese individuals with a BMI between 25 and 40 kg/m 2 and age between 18 and 65 years, the researchers found that over a time period of 12 weeks in which the subjects either practiced their "normal" eating habits or changed to a healthy food diet (HFT), supplemented with fiber (FIB) or switched to a healthy food diet that was supplemented with fiber (HFT-FIB)... [...] weight, BMI and % total body fat were significantly reduced in FIB

Oral ATP Supplementation Proves Completely Ineffective Even at Very High Doses

I think most supplement companies have hitherto given up on convincing you of the use of oral ATP supplements. About 2 month ago, I did however notice a new "high dosed" product (I cannot remember the figures out of my head, but the daily dose was far below 1.000mg) was released to be bought by the in-educated public ;-) Just to discourage you from wasting your money on any such products, here is a very recent study ( Coolen. 2010 ) on the futility of attempting to rise ATP levels via oral supplementation: Thirty-two healthy subjects were randomised to receive 0, 250, 1250 or 5000 mg ATP per d for 28 d by means of enteric-coated pellets . In addition, on days 0 and 28, all thirty-two subjects received 5000 mg ATP to determine whether prolonged administration would induce adaptations in the bioavailability of ATP. ATP supplementation for 4 weeks did not lead to changes in blood or plasma ATP concentrations. Of all ATP metabolites, only plasma uric acid levels incr

Fish, but not Fish Oil Supplements Reduce Breast Cancer & All-Cause Mortality Risk in Women

This is another piece of information which came up in the course of my recent research into the latest studies on fish oil supplementation: Capped fish oil , obviously, is very different from the "real deal" fish... you know that stuff that is swimming in the ocean and does not come in convenient 1 gram caps; that stuff that stinks like fish and is not molecularly distilled or filtered, ... Researchers from the University of California ( Petterson. 2010 ) recently found that... Women with higher intakes of EPA and DHA from food had an approximate 25% reduced risk of additional breast cancer events [tertile 2: HR = 0.74 (95% CI = 0.58-0.94); tertile 3: HR = 0.72 (95% CI = 0.57-0.90)] compared with the lowest tertile of intake. Women with higher intakes of EPA and DHA from food had a dose-dependent reduced risk of all-cause mortality [tertile 2: HR = 0.75 (95% CI = 0.55-1.04); tertile 3: HR = 0.59 (95% CI = 0.43-0.82)]. EPA and DHA intake from fish oil supplements
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