Antioxidants for Sports & Fitness

Why do athletes use it?*

Some athletes say that antioxidants

What do the advocates say?*

Antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, CoQ10, glutathione, and alpha lipoic acid are important supplements for everyone, but especially for those who exercise on a regular basis. The rational is that exercise is a highly oxidative process and, as a consequence, produces free radicals from aerobic metabolism. Antioxidant compounds help alleviate this process.

There is conflicting evidence whether the best time to supplement with an antioxidant is before or after a workout.

How much is usually taken by athletes?

Most research has demonstrated that strenuous exercise increases production of harmful substances called free radicals, which can damage muscle tissue and result in inflammation and muscle soreness. Exercising in cities or smoggy areas also increases exposure to free radicals. Antioxidants, including vitamin C and vitamin E, neutralize free radicals before they can damage the body, so antioxidants may aid in exercise recovery. Regular exercise increases the efficiency of the antioxidant defense system, potentially reducing the amount of supplemental antioxidants that might otherwise be needed for protection. However, at least theoretically, supplements of antioxidant vitamins may be beneficial for older or untrained people or athletes who are undertaking an especially vigorous training protocol or athletic event.1 2

Placebo-controlled research, some of it double-blind, has shown that taking 400 to 3,000 mg of vitamin C per day for several days before and after intense exercise may reduce pain and speed up muscle strength recovery.3 4 5 However, taking vitamin C only after such exercise was not effective in another double-blind study.6 While some research has reported that vitamin E supplementation in the amount of 800 to 1,200 IU per day reduces biochemical measures of free-radical activity and muscle damage caused by strenuous exercise,7 8 9 several studies have not found such benefits,10 11 12 13 and no research has investigated the effect of vitamin E on performance-related measures of strenuous exercise recovery. A combination of 90 mg per day of coenzyme Q10 and a very small amount of vitamin E did not produce any protective effects for marathon runners in one double-blind trial,14 while in another double-blind trial a combination of 50 mg per day of zinc and 3 mg per day of copper significantly reduced evidence of post-exercise free radical activity.15

In most well-controlled studies, exercise performance has not been shown to improve following supplementation with vitamin C, unless a deficiency exists, as might occur in athletes with unhealthy or irrational eating patterns.16 17 Similarly, vitamin E has not benefited exercise performance,18 19 except possibly at high altitudes.20 21

Resources

See a list of books, periodicals, and other resources for this and related topics.

*Athletes and fitness advocates may claim benefits for antioxidants based on their personal or professional experience. These are individual opinions and testimonials that may or may not be supported by controlled clinical studies or published scientific articles on antioxidants. For more complete and detailed information, including references and safety information, see Antioxidants as nutritional supplements.

References

1. Kanter M. Free radicals, exercise and antioxidant supplementation. Proc Nutr Soc 1998;57:9–13 [review].

2. Dekkers JC, Van Doornen LJ, Kemper HC. The role of antioxidant vitamins and enzymes in the prevention of exercise-induced muscle damage. Sports Med 1996;21(3):213–38 [review].

3. Jakeman P, Maxwell S. Effect of antioxidant vitamin supplementation on muscle function after eccentric exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol 1993;67:426–30.

4. Kaminski M, Boal R. An effect of ascorbic acid on delayed-onset muscle soreness. Pain 1992;50:317–21.

5. Thompson D, Williams C, McGregor SJ, et al. Prolonged vitamin C supplementation and recovery from demanding exercise. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab 2001;11:466–81.

6. Thompson D, Williams C, Garcia-Roves P, et al. Post-exercise vitamin C supplementation and recovery from demanding exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol 2003;89:393–400.

7. Itoh H, Ohkuwa T, Yamazaki Y, et al. Vitamin E supplementation attenuates leakage of enzymes following 6 successive days of running training. Int J Sports Med 2000;21:369–74.

8. McBride JM, Kraemer WJ, Triplett-McBride T, Sebastianelli W. Effect of resistance exercise on free radical production. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1998;30:67–72.))

9. Evans WJ. Vitamin E, vitamin C, and exercise. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;72:647S–52S [review].

10. Dawson B, Henry GJ, Goodman C, et al. Effect of Vitamin C and E supplementation on biochemical and ultrastructural indices of muscle damage after a 21 km run. Int J Sports Med 2002;23:10–15.))

11. Beaton LJ, Allan DA, Tarnopolsky MA, et al. Contraction-induced muscle damage is unaffected by vitamin E supplementation. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2002;34:798–805.

12. Petersen EW, Ostrowski K, Ibfelt T, et al. Effect of vitamin supplementation on cytokine response and on muscle damage after strenuous exercise. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2001;280:C1570–5.

13. Kanter MM, Nolte LA, Holloszy JO. Effects of an antioxidant vitamin mixture on lipid peroxidation at rest and postexercise. J Appl Physiol 1993;74:965–9.

14. Kaikkonen J, Kosonen L, Nyyssonen K, et al. Effect of combined coenzyme Q10 and d-alpha-tocopheryl acetate supplementaion on exercise-induced lipid peroxidation and muscular damage: a placebo-controlled double-blind study in marathon runners. Free Radic Res 1998;29:85–92.

15. Singh A, Failla ML, Deuster PA. Exercise-induced changes in immune function: effects of zinc supplementation. J Appl Physiol 1994;76:2298–303.

16. Johnston CS, Swan PD, Corte C. Substrate utilization and work efficiency during submaximal exercise in vitamin C depleted-repleted adults. Int J Vitam Nutr Res 1999;69:41–4.

17. Gerster H. The role of vitamin C in athletic performance. J Am Coll Nutr 1989;8:636–43 [review].

18. Tiidus PM, Houston ME. Vitamin E status and response to exercise training. Sports Med 1995;20:12–23 [review].

19. Akova B, Surmen-Gur E, Gur H, et al. Exercise-induced oxidative stress and muscle performance in healthy women: role of vitamin E supplementation and endogenous oestradiol. Eur J Appl Physiol 2001;84:141–7.

20. Simon-Schnass I, Pabst H. Influence of vitamin E on physical performance. Int J Vitam Nutr Res 1988;58:49–54.))

21. Shepard RJ. Vitamin E and athletic performance. J Sports Med 1983;23:461–70 [review].