Nutraceutical: their role in improving sports performance

Athletes experience regular cycles of physiological stress accompanied by transient inflammation, oxidative stress and immune perturbations. In fact, during exercise, oxygen consumption in muscle can increase 15- fold, leading to free radicals production that impairs the antioxidant system. High concentrations of free radicals can be harmful to many cellular tissues, although some reactive molecules, such as hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide may serve functions in cellular signaling and as secondary messengers in moderate concentrations. Nutritional support has the potential to partially mitigate exercise-induced changes without interfering with the signaling activities necessary for training adaptations. Athletes should avoid foods that may increase oxidative stress and increase foods that are higher in antioxidants. An example would be a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, which raises plasma levels of antioxidants and protects against many chronic diseases. Optimizing nutrition in combination with exercise is considered an established, effective ergogenic practice for athletic performance. In recent years, the nutraceutical industry has gone from a simple conceptual area in biomedical research to a value-added industry with a promising future. Nutraceutical substances are normally obtained from foods, plants or even microorganisms. They have the potential to treat or prevent diseases, especially chronic ones, to improve physical and mental health, to increase life expectancy and to combat the typical disorders of aging. In this paper, we expose existing evidence surrounding the efficacy of most common nutraceuticals compounds in combination or not with exercise in relation to skeletal muscle mass, metabolism, and exercise performance.