Effects of acute b-alanine supplemetation on countermovement jump performance after a 4x400 m fatigue protocol: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

This study aimed to examine the effect of acute beta-alanine (β-alanine) supplementation on jump performance after a strenuous fatigue protocol. Twelve healthy young men (age 21.4±0.5 years, body height 180.2±5.8 cm, body mass 76.6±9.2 kg) volunteered to participate in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The experimental group ingested 3.2 g of β-alanine (separated into two 1.6 g dosages) mixed with 23 g of glucose, whereas the placebo group ingested two dosages containing 23 g of glucose. Following the supplementation intake, participants completed a jump protocol involving countermovement jump (CMJ) and four consecutive countermovement jumps (CMJ-4). Subsequently, a 4x400 m running fatigue protocol was carried out to produce fatigue. After the fatigue protocol, the same jumping tests were repeated, CMJ and CMJ-4, to evaluate the loss in jump height. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze differences between the groups, whereas Wilcoxon signed-rank test was conducted to analyze differences within the groups with statistical significance set at p<.05. After β-alanine supplementation, no significant decrease in jump height was found in the experimental group in none of the tests after the fatigue protocol. Conversely, a significant decrease was noticed in the placebo group in CMJ but not in the CMJ-4 test. In conclusion, an acute β-alanine supplementation could attenuate jump height loss after the fatigue protocol. Therefore, athletes and coaches should consider acute β-alanine supplementation to attenuate sports performance decrease after high-intensity exercises in which muscle acidosis is highly increased

Effects of probiotics on strength and power performance in a trained population: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The main purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of probiotics intake on strength and power performance in a trained population. This study was designed following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement guidelines. The review was registered in PROSPERO with the following registration number: CRD42021248173. PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were searched from their inception to the 18th March 2022 to find original research studies evaluating the effects of probiotic supplementation on strength and power performance tests in a trained population. The following inclusion criteria were applied to select studies: probiotics supplementation; trained population; strength and power performance measurements; human experimental trial; controlled with a placebo group; peer-reviewed and original articles written in English language. Random effects model and standardized mean differences (SMD) were used following Hedges’ G for the meta-analysis. Seven studies were finally included after the inclusion/exclusion criteria were applied (n=142 participants). Results of the meta-analysis identified a significant benefit of probiotics compared to placebo treatments (p=.04), with a small pooled effect size (SMD=0.36 [0.02-0.70]; I2=43%), and no funnel plot asymmetry was present. In summary, this systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrated that probiotic supplementation could effectively enhance strength and power performance in a trained population

Effects of Probiotic Supplementation on Exercise with Predominance of Aerobic Metabolism in Trained Population: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression

The scientific literature about probiotic intake and its effect on sports performance is growing. Therefore, the main aim of this systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression was to review all information about the effects of probiotic supplementation on performance tests with predominance of aerobic metabolism in trained populations (athletes and/or Division I players and/or trained population: ≥8 h/week and/or ≥5 workouts/week). A structured search was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA®) statement and PICOS guidelines in PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science (WOS), and Scopus international databases from inception to 1 November 2021. Studies involving probiotic supplementation in trained population and execution of performance test with aerobic metabolism predominance (test lasted more than 5 min) were considered for inclusion. Fifteen articles were included in the final systematic review (in total, 388 participants were included). After 3 studies were removed due to a lack of data for the meta-analysis and meta-regression, 12 studies with 232 participants were involved. With the objective of assessing the risk of bias of included studies, Cochrane Collaboration Guidelines and the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale were performed. For all included studies the following data was extracted: authors, year of publication, study design, the size of the sample, probiotic administration (dose and time), and characteristics of participants. The random effects model and pooled standardized mean differences (SMDs) were used according to Hedges’ g for the meta-analysis. In order to determine if dose and duration covariates could predict probiotic effects, a meta-regression was also conducted. Results showed a small positive and significant effect on the performance test with aerobic metabolic predominance (SMD = 0.29; CI = 0.08–0.50; p < 0.05). Moreover, the subgroup analysis displayed significant greater benefits when the dose was ≥30 × 109 colony forming units (CFU) (SMD, 0.47; CI, 0.05 to 0.89; p < 0.05), when supplementation duration was ≤4 weeks (SMD, 0.44; CI, 0.05 to 0.84; p < 0.05), when single strain probiotics were used (SMD, 0.33; CI, 0.06 to 0.60; p < 0.05), when participants were males (SMD, 0.30; CI, 0.04 to 0.56; p < 0.05), and when the test was performed to exhaustion (SMD, 0.45; CI, 0.05 to 0.48; p < 0.05). However, with references to the findings of the meta-regression, selected covariates did not predict probiotic effects in highly trained population. In summary, the current systematic review and meta-analysis supported the potential effects of probiotics supplementation to improve performance in a test in which aerobic metabolism is predominant in trained population. However, more research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms of action of this supplement

Epidemiology of children's swimming competence and water safety

IntroductionThe main purpose of this study was to investigate children's swimming competence in primary schools of districts in Vojvodina, Serbia.MethodsIncluded subjects were primary school students from first to eighth grade (N = 2,778; male = 1,454, female = 1,324; age = 10.73 ± 2.1 years). We used Swimming Competence Questionnaire to acquire and analyze their swimming experience, non-fatal aquatic events, and demographics. For the statistical analysis, logistic regression and hierarchical multiple regression were used to evaluate if the factors and SC and NFAE were associated. The analyses were carried out by using SPSS® software version 24.0 (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA).ResultsFamilies with more income and education generally have children with more swimming competence, experience, knowledge, and skills related to water safety. First step in analysis revealed that gender (β = 0.05, p &lt; 0.01), education level (β = 0.06, p &lt; 0.01) age (β = 0.171, p &lt; 0.01), and family income (β = 0.04, p &lt; 0.01) were significant swimming competence (SC) predictors (R2 = 0.04). Age (OR = 1.15, p &lt; 0.01) was the only significant predictor in Step 1 predicting non-fatal aquatic events (NFAE). In Step 2, variables associated with SC were swimming location (ΔR2 = 0.06, p &lt; 0.01), swimming experience (ΔR2 = 0.16, p &lt; 0.01), swimming accessibility (ΔR2 = 0.05, p &lt; 0.01), and learning experience (ΔR2 = 0.03, p &lt; 0.01) (total R2 = 0.26 to 0.47, p &lt; 0.01). Only a minority of participants reported that they could not swim further than 5 meters using general stroke (37.15%).ConclusionNational education trainers programs must be prioritized with the primary strategy of transferring knowledge to swimming and water safety. Families with lower income must be included without exceptions. This is perhaps a key factor in preventing NFAE, increasing SC, and increasing water safety

Effects of acute b-alanine supplementation on countermovement jump performance after a 4x400 m fatigue protocol: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

This study aimed to examine the effect of acute beta-alanine (β-alanine) supplementation on jump performance after a strenuous fatigue protocol. Twelve healthy young men (age 21.4±0.5 years, body height 180.2±5.8 cm, body mass 76.6±9.2 kg) volunteered to participate in this randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled trial. The experimental group ingested 3.2 g of β-alanine (separated into two 1.6 g dosages) mixed with 23 g of glucose, whereas the placebo group ingested two dosages containing 23 g of glucose. Following the supplementation intake, participants completed a jump protocol involving countermovement jump (CMJ) and four consecutive countermovement jumps (CMJ-4). Subsequently, a 4x400 m running fatigue protocol was carried out to produce fatigue. After the fatigue protocol, the same jumping tests were repeated, CMJ and CMJ-4, to evaluate the loss in jump height. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze differences between the groups, whereas Wilcoxon signed-rank test was conducted to analyze differences within the groups with statistical significance set at p<.05. After β-alanine supplementation, no significant decrease in jump height was found in the experimental group in none of the tests after the fatigue protocol. Conversely, a significant decrease was noticed in the placebo group in CMJ but not in the CMJ-4 test. In conclusion, an acute β-alanine supplementation could attenuate jump height loss after the fatigue protocol. Therefore, athletes and coaches should consider acute β-alanine supplementation to attenuate sports performance decrease after high-intensity exercises in which muscle acidosis is highly increased.publishedVersio