Analysis of Sport Supplement Consumption by Competitive Swimmers According to Sex and Competitive Level.

Sports supplements (SS) are commonly used by athletes to improve their performance. SS use by competitive swimmers is reported to be prevalent but there is no evidence of such use by elite swimmers, either male or female. The objective of this research was to study the patterns of SS use by competitive swimmers based on sex and competitive levels (national and international); Methods: Using the categories of the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), a total of 102 competitive swimmers (59 men and 43 women) completed a validated self-administered questionnaire on the use of SS; (3) Results: Overall, 86.9% of swimmers had consumed SSs with no differences observed between males and females (p = 0.247) or between competitive levels (p = 0.597). The SS that were most consumed by swimmers were caffeine (53.5%), sport drinks (52.5%), sport bars (51.5%), and vitamin C (43.4%). SSs categorized as medical supplements were consumed significantly more frequently by international swimmers (p = 0.012), with significant differences also found in the level—sex interaction (p = 0.049); (4) Conclusions: Compared to other sports disciplines, the prevalence of SS consumption is high in competitive swimmers regardless of performance level or gender. However, the consumption of medical supplements was greater in swimmers at a higher performance level.pre-print1202 K

Natural bioactive compounds from winery by-products as health promoters: A review

The relevance of food composition for human health has increased consumers’ interest in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, as well as foods enriched in bioactive compounds and nutraceuticals. This fact has led to a growing attention of suppliers on reuse of agro-industrial wastes rich in healthy plant ingredients. On this matter, grape has been pointed out as a rich source of bioactive compounds. Currently, up to 210 million tons of grapes (Vitis vinifera L.) are produced annually, being the 15% of the produced grapes addressed to the wine-making industry. This socio-economic activity generates a large amount of solid waste (up to 30%, w/w of the material used). Winery wastes include biodegradable solids namely stems, skins, and seeds. Bioactive compounds from winery by-products have disclosed interesting health promoting activities both in vitro and in vivo. This is a comprehensive review on the phytochemicals present in winery by-products, extraction techniques, industrial uses, and biological activities demonstrated by their bioactive compounds concerning potential for human health. © 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.This work was supported by national funds from FCT-Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, under the projects PEst-OE/AGR/UI4033/2014 and Project INNOFOOD-INNovation in the FOOD sector through the valorization of food and agro-food by-products-NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-0000029, financed by the North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (ON.2–O Novo Norte) under the National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN), through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). The authors also express their gratitude to the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for the funding through the CICYT project AGL2011-23690, and the CYTED Program (Ref. 112RT0460) CORNUCOPIA Thematic Network [192]. We acknowledge support by the CSIC Open Access Publication Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI)Peer Reviewe

Alternative sweeteners modify the urinary excretion of flavanones metabolites ingested through a new maqui-berry beverage

Dietary sugar has been largely related to the onset of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity, among others. The growing awareness on the close relationship between the dietary habits and this health disturbance has encouraged the development of new beverages using alternative sweeteners that could contribute to combat the above referred pathophysiological disorders. To gain further insight into this issue, the present work, upon an acute dietary intervention, evaluated the urinary excretion of flavanones ingested through polyphenols-rich beverages composed of maqui berry and citrus, with the aim of establishing the highest urinary excretion rate and metabolite profiles. The functional beverages evaluated were supplemented with a range of sweeteners including sucrose (natural and high caloric), stevia (natural and non-caloric), and sucralose (artificial and non-caloric) as an approach that would allow reducing the intake of sugars and provide bioactive phenolics (flavanones). The juices developed were ingested by volunteers (n = 20) and the resulting flavanones and their phase II metabolites in urine were analyzed by Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography ElectroSpray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS). A total of 16 metabolites were detected: eriodyctiol, naringenin, and homoeriodyctiol derivatives, where peak concentrations were attained 3.5 h after beverage intake. Sucralose and stevia were the sweeteners that provided the highest urinary excretion for most compounds. Sucrose did not provide a remarkable higher elimination through urine of any compounds in comparison with sucralose or stevia. These results propose two alternative sweeteners to sucrose (sucralose and stevia), an overused, high caloric sweetener that promotes some metabolic diseaseThis work was partially funded by the Spanish MINECO through Research Project AGL2016-75332-C2-1-R. VA was supported by a FPI grant (BES-2017-079754). The authors thank the English expert reviewer (Mario Fon) for the revision of the English style and grammar

Inflammatory Gene Expression In Whole Peripheral Blood At Early Stage Of Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Objective: Characterization of altered expression of selected transcripts linked to inflammation in the peripheral blood of sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (sALS) patients at early stage of disease to increase knowledge about peripheral inflammatory response in sALS. Methods: RNA expression levels of 45 genes were assessed by RT-qPCR in 22 sALS cases in parallel with 13 age-matched controls. Clinical and serum parameters were assessed at the same time. Results: Upregulation of genes coding for factors involved in leukocyte extravasation (ITGB2, INPP5D, SELL, and ICAM1) and extracellular matrix remodeling (MMP9 and TIMP2), as well as downregulation of certain chemokines (CCL5 and CXC5R), antiinflammatory cytokines (IL10, TGFB2, and IL10RA), pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6), and T-cell regulators (CD2 and TRBC1) was found in sALS cases independently of gender, clinical symptoms at onset (spinal, respiratory, or bulbar), progression, peripheral leukocyte number, and integrity of RNA. MMP9 levels positively correlated with age, whereas CCR5, CCL5, and TRBC1 negatively correlated with age in sALS but not in controls. Relatively higher TNFA expression levels correlate with higher creatinine kinase protein levels in plasma. Conclusion: Present findings show early inflammatory responses characterized by upregulation of factors enabling extravasation of leukocytes and extracellular matrix remodeling in blood in sALS cases, in addition to increased TNFA levels paralleling skeletal muscle damage

Efecto del medio ambiente sore el comportamiento reproductivo y la fertilidad de vacas de la raza suizo americano en el trópico subhúmedo

EI estudio se realizó en el campo Experimental EI Verdineño, Nayarit. EI objetivo fue determinar los efectos ambientales sobre el comportamiento reproductivo y la fertilidad

Use of Sports Supplements in Competitive Handball Players: Sex and Competitive Level Differences

Sports supplements are commonly used by elite athletes with the main goal of enhancing sport performance. Supplements use might be substantially different depending on the sport discipline, sex, and competitive level. To date, data about prevalence and the most-commonly used supplements in handball are scarce. Thus, the aim of this investigation was to determine the patterns of supplements use by handball players of both sexes and with different competitive levels: One hundred and eighty-seven handball players (112 men and 75 women) of different competitive levels (106 professional and 81 amateur) completed a validated self-administered questionnaire about supplements use. Supplements were classified according to the categorization of the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). Overall, 59.9% of the handball players (n = 112) declared the use of at least one supplement and there were no significant differences between men and women (58.9% vs. 61.3%, p = 0.762) nor between professional vs. amateur handball players (67.1% vs. 53.8%, p = 0.074). The most prevalent supplements were sports drinks (42.2%), followed by energy bars (35.3%) and caffeine-containing products (31.6%). However, a greater consumption of group A supplements (those with strong scientific evidence; p = 0.029) and group B supplements (those with emerging scientific support, p = 0.012) was observed in male compared to female handball players. Supplements categorized as medical supplements were more commonly consumed in professional vs. amateur players (0.48 ± 0.80 vs. 0.21 ± 0.44, supplements p < 0.006). Additionally, a higher consumption of group B supplements was observed in professional compared to amateur players (0.58 ± 0.88 vs. 0.33 ± 0.72 supplements, p = 0.015). Handball players revealed a moderate use of supplements while sex and competitive level slighted changed the pattern of supplements use. A high portion of handball players use supplements as fuel during exercise and reported the use of caffeine-containing supplements to enhance performance.Universidad Francisco de Vitoria UFV-2020/4

Providing choice increases children's vegetable intake

This work has been partially supported by the pre-doctoral fellowship of Junta de Andalucía, grant HUM-02763 (Junta de Andalucía, Spain) and PSI2011-23702; PSI2012-31641 (MINECO, Spain).One hundred and fifty children between 4 and 6 years old were studied to examine the effect of providing them with a choice of vegetables on their vegetable consumption. Offering vegetable choice was expected to increase the children’s vegetable intake due to increased personal autonomy. The option for the children to choose the vegetables to ingest was varied across three different conditions. Within the discrete choice condition (DCC), children could choose the target vegetable at the beginning of the meal; within the continued discrete choice plus variety condition (CDCP), children were exposed to a variety of vegetables (zucchini and green beans), so that they could choose the target vegetable whenever they made a bite during the whole meal. Within the no-choice condition (NCC), children were alternately exposed to only one kind of vegetable, so that no choice possibility was provided. The choice conditions (CDCP and DCC) were associated with higher vegetable intake, in comparison to the no-choice control condition (NCC). No significant differences were found between the DCC and the CDCP regarding participants’ total vegetable intake. These results demonstrate the enhancing effect of providing choice to increase vegetable intake in young children. A higher degree of personal control and consequent level of intrinsic motivation is hypothesized to underlie the effect of choice availability.Junta de Andalucía, grant HUM-02763PSI2011-23702; PSI2012-31641 (MINECO, Spain

Acute effects of a single tennis match on passive shoulder rotation range of motion, isometric strength and serve speed in professional tennis players

Shoulder pain has been associated with glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD) and a reduction in external rotation (ER) strength; however, in tennis players, there is scarce evi- dence regarding the impact of a single match on shoulder range of motion (ROM), strength and serve speed. The aim of this study was to determine the acute effect of a single tennis match on shoulder rotation ROM, isometric strength and serve speed. Twenty-six profes- sional tennis players participated in the study (20.4±4.4 years; 10.5±3.2 years tennis exper- tise; 20.5±5.4 h/week training). Passive shoulder external (ER-ROM) and internal rotation ROM (IR-ROM), ER and IR isometric strength were measured before and after a single ten- nis match (80.3±21.3 min) in both shoulder´s. Moreover, the total arc of motion (TAM) and ER/IR strength ratio were calculated. Video analysis was used to assess the number of serves and groundstrokes, while a radar gun was utilized to measure maximal ball speed. In the dominant shoulder, compared to pre-match levels, IR-ROM was significantly reduced (-1.3%; p = 0.042), while ER-ROM (5.3%; p = 0.037) and TAM (3.1%; p = 0.050) were signif- icantly increased. In the non-dominant shoulder, ER-ROM (3.7%; p = 0.006) was increased. Furthermore, in the dominant shoulder, the isometric ER strength was significantly reduced after the match (-4.8%; p = 0.012), whereas serve speed was not significantly reduced after match (-1.16%; p = 0.197). A single tennis match leads to significant reductions in shoulder ROM (e.g., IR of the dominant shoulder) and isometric strength (e.g., ER of the dominant shoulder). This study reveals the importance of recovery strategies prescription aiming at minimize post-match alteration in the shoulders.SIThe authors would like to express their gratitude to the tennis players for their participation.The authors received no specific funding for this work

Caffeine supplementation improves physical performance without affecting fatigue level: a double-blind crossover study.

This study examined the effect of caffeine supplementation (CAFF) in a Wingate test (WT), and the behaviour of blood lactate concentrations (BLa) and neuromuscular fatigue (NMF), measured as reduced countermovement jump (CMJ) performance, in response to the WT. In a double-blind crossover study, 16 participants attended the laboratory twice, separated by a 72-hour window. In the sessions, participants first ingested 6 mg·kg-1 of either CAFF or placebo (PLAC), and then performed a WT. BLa was measured before (L-pre), and 0.5 min (L-post-0.5) and 3.5 min (L-post-3.5) after conducting the WT. The CMJ test was conducted before (CMJ pre), after (CMJ post), and 3 min after completing (CMJ post-3) the WT. The results indicated that CAFF enhanced peak power (Wpeak: + 3.22%; p = 0.040), time taken to reach Wpeak (T_Wpeak: -18.76%; p = 0.001) and mean power (Wmean: + 2.7%; p = 0.020). A higher BLa was recorded for CAFF at L-post-0.5 (+ 13.29%; p = 0.009) and L-post-3.5 (+ 10.51%; p = 0.044) compared to PLAC. CAFF improved peak power (PP; + 3.44%; p = 0.003) and mean power (MP; + 4.78%; p = 0.006) at CMJ pre, compared to PLAC, whereas PP and MP were significantly diminished at CMJ post and CMJ post-3 compared to pre (p < 0.001 for all comparisons) under both the CAFF and PLAC conditions. PP and MP were increased at post-3 compared to post (p < 0.001 for all comparisons) for both conditions. In conclusion, CAFF increased WT performance and BLa without affecting NMF measured by CMJ. Thus, CAFF may allow athletes to train with higher workloads and enhance the supercompensation effects after an adequate recovery period.post-print756 K

Las aplicaciones de etefón aumentan rendimiento de fruto de lima 'Persa' de exportación

Los mejores precios de lima 'Persa' en México y en el extranjero son de enero al mes de abril, en esta época se presenta poca fruta por factores ambientales, sin embargo existen diversas técnicas agronómicas que aumentan rendimiento de fruto en estos periodos. El experimento se realizó en el rancho 'Antonio', municipio de Tlapacoyan, Ver., con el objetivo de promover floración y cosechas de fruto de lima 'Persa' fuera de época. Se utilizaron árboles de lima 'Persa' injertados en naranjo 'Agrio' de 8 años, los tratamientos fueron, testigo sin aplicación, etefón a 500 mg·L-1, urea al 10 % y nitrato de potasio al 10 %. El promedio de cinco fechas en número de flores por rama mayor fue con urea al 10 % y menor en el testigo con diferencias estadísticas (P≤0.05). El promedio de cuatro fechas en el número de frutos por árbol con calidad de exportación verde mayor fue con etefón y sólo superó estadísticamente (P≤0.05) al testigo. El promedio de cuatro fechas en número de frutos por árbol con calidad de exportación para Estados Unidos, mayor fue con etefón 500 mg·L-1 y no presentaron diferencias estadísticas (P≤0.05) los demás tratamientos