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Low vitamin C values are linked with decreased physical performance and increased oxidative stress: reversal by vitamin C supplementation

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Abstract

Purpose

It has been suggested that part of the failure of antioxidant supplementation to reduce oxidative stress and promote health is that it has been administered in humans with normal levels of antioxidants.

Methods

To test this hypothesis, we screened 100 males for vitamin C baseline values in blood. Subsequently, the 10 individuals with the lowest and the 10 with the highest vitamin C values were assigned in two groups. Using a placebo-controlled crossover design, the 20 selected subjects performed aerobic exercise to exhaustion (oxidant stimulus) before and after vitamin C supplementation for 30 days.

Results

The low vitamin C group had lower VO2max values than the high vitamin C group. Vitamin C supplementation in this group marginally increased VO2max. Baseline concentration of F2-isoprostanes and protein carbonyls was higher in the low vitamin C group compared to the high vitamin C group. Vitamin C supplementation decreased the baseline concentration of F2-isoprostanes and protein carbonyls in both groups, yet the decrease was greater in the low vitamin C group. Before vitamin C supplementation, F2-isoprostanes and protein carbonyls were increased to a greater extent after exercise in the high vitamin C group compared to the low vitamin C group. Interestingly, after vitamin C supplementation, this difference was narrowed.

Conclusion

We show for the first time that low vitamin C concentration is linked with decreased physical performance and increased oxidative stress and that vitamin C supplementation decreases oxidative stress and might increase exercise performance only in those with low initial concentration of vitamin C.

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Acknowledgments

This work was partially funded by research Grant awarded to AAT and to GP by the European University Cyprus as well as to ISV (No. 89778) by the Research Dissemination Center of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical standards

An informed written consent was obtained for all participants, after they were informed of all risks, discomforts, and benefits involved in the study. The procedures were in accordance with the Helsinki declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000, and approval was received from the Ethics Committee of the local university.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Physical Education and Sport Science, University of Thessaly, 42100, Karies, Trikala, Greece

    Vassilis Paschalis

  2. Department of Health Sciences, School of Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Vassilis Paschalis, Anastasios A. Theodorou & George Panayiotou

  3. School of Physical Education and Sports Science at Serres, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 62110, Agios Ioannis, Serres, Greece

    Antonios Kyparos, Konstantina Dipla, Andreas Zafeiridis, Ioannis S. Vrabas & Michalis G. Nikolaidis

Authors
  1. Vassilis Paschalis
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  2. Anastasios A. Theodorou
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  3. Antonios Kyparos
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  4. Konstantina Dipla
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  5. Andreas Zafeiridis
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  6. George Panayiotou
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  7. Ioannis S. Vrabas
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  8. Michalis G. Nikolaidis
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michalis G. Nikolaidis.

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Paschalis, V., Theodorou, A.A., Kyparos, A. et al. Low vitamin C values are linked with decreased physical performance and increased oxidative stress: reversal by vitamin C supplementation. Eur J Nutr 55, 45–53 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-014-0821-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-014-0821-x

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