SuppVersity - Nutrition and Exercise Science for Everyone

Image 1: In view of the fact that most confectionary licorice contains no more than ~3% of the roots of the licorice plant, I would rather bother about the tricks the ~74g of carbohydrates (on a 100g base) of this treat may play on your insulin levels than about any potential negative effects the consumption of a few or even a whole bunch of these licorice wheels may have on your testosterone levels or overall manliness ;-) You probably have heard about licorice, the root of Glycyrrhiza glabra , a legume with a slightly sweet taste and one of the ingredient of the eponymous candy being a potent adrenal "revitalizer" that is used and advocated my many naturopathic doctors. If you frequent any of the major health and fitness boards on the Internet, you will yet also be familiar with some of its unwanted side-effects, first and foremost its scientifically validated anti-androgenic (specifically testosterone reducing) effects ( Zamansoltani. 2009 ). While Zamansoltani et al...

After a sudden onset of discussions around the beneficial or even detrimental effects of vitamin supplements in general and antioxidants in particular in the mid to late 2000s, vitamins and, even more, other anti-oxidants have been put back on the map, lately. A recent epidemiological study from the University of Connecticut ( Floegel. 2011 ) provides further evidence for the hypothesis that, after all, consumption of adequate amounts of vitamins C and E , beta carotene , flavonoids and selenium would be beneficial to your overall health Intakes of vitamins C and E and carotene were inversely associated with the probability of having serum CRP concentrations >3 mg/l in multivariate logistic regression models. Flavonoid and Se intakes were not associated with the odds of elevated serum CRP concentrations. The mean plasma Hcy concentration was 8·61 (95 % CI 8·48, 8·74) μmol/l. Intakes of vitamins C, E, carotenes and Se were inversely associated with the odds of plasma H...

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...