Emma O'Connor

Citation

Thesis Title
Dietary antioxidants and the efficiency of oxygen transport and uptake during endurance exercise

Read article at Massey Research Online:

Dietary antioxidants have the potential to enhance the efficiency of oxygen transport and uptake during endurance exercise, and subsequently improve performance. Ms Crum investigated the ability of two naturally-sourced antioxidant-rich supplements on their potential to act as ergogenic aids for endurance cyclists. Despite previously showing favourable effects in rats, keratin, a thiol-containing structural protein, derived from chicken feathers, did not alter oxygen uptake, red blood cell production or exercise performance. However, pomegranate extract, which contains numerous polyphenol antioxidants, reduced the negative effects of hypoxia on oxygen uptake when ingested 2.5 hours prior to intense cycling exercise. Further, when pomegranate extract was taken daily, for eight days prior to a performance test, the amount of oxygen required to perform submaximal cycling exercise was also reduced. These results provide evidence that supplements containing large quantities of polyphenol antioxidants have the potential to increase the efficiency of oxygen use during endurance exercise.

Supervisors
Professor Steve Stannard
Dr Carlene Starck
Associate Professor Matthew Barnes