U of M study shows that dietary supplements may offset effects of overeating
By: Ashli Blow
Issue date: 2/19/10 Section: News
Long workouts may feel like an accomplishment, but new research at The University of Memphis suggests that to keep a healthy body, students will have to incorporate a careful diet that's more than mother approved.
Sports and health science graduate student Robert Canale said the Cardiorespiratory-Metabolic Laboratory hopes to learn how to minimize oxidative tissue damage caused by exercising and over-eating. To do this, lab workers are using human subjects to study how dietary supplements can cause and prevent these effects when used in combination with diet and exercise.
Oxidative stress is caused when highly reactive molecules, called "free radicals," form as oxygen is used by the body, allowing cells to produce energy. The free radicals interact with other molecules within the cells, sometimes causing damage to proteins, membranes and genes. Foods rich in antioxidants like tomatoes, citrus fruits, tea and carrots can counteract the process, but Canale said he knows students' diets aren't known for their nutritionally sound dietary sources.
"In our western society, there is so much oxidative damage from over-consumption," Canale said. "People will go to the gym and burn about 300 calories and come back and reward themselves with a meal that exceeds what they've burned."
There are more than 1,000 calories in a typical fast food meal, Canale explained.
"People need to recognize what they're doing to their bodies," he said.
Now in his second year on the project, Canale said experiments of this type are always ongoing.
"You learn about it and want to inform the public," he said. "We can help other universities by making people aware the harm you're doing to your body by overeating."
The effects of sport and dietary supplements are studied separately from the research of oxidative stress. Before studying a certain supplement, one of the graduate students contacts the company and tells them they are testing it for a certain ingredient.
Sports and health science graduate student Robert Canale said the Cardiorespiratory-Metabolic Laboratory hopes to learn how to minimize oxidative tissue damage caused by exercising and over-eating. To do this, lab workers are using human subjects to study how dietary supplements can cause and prevent these effects when used in combination with diet and exercise.
Oxidative stress is caused when highly reactive molecules, called "free radicals," form as oxygen is used by the body, allowing cells to produce energy. The free radicals interact with other molecules within the cells, sometimes causing damage to proteins, membranes and genes. Foods rich in antioxidants like tomatoes, citrus fruits, tea and carrots can counteract the process, but Canale said he knows students' diets aren't known for their nutritionally sound dietary sources.
"In our western society, there is so much oxidative damage from over-consumption," Canale said. "People will go to the gym and burn about 300 calories and come back and reward themselves with a meal that exceeds what they've burned."
There are more than 1,000 calories in a typical fast food meal, Canale explained.
"People need to recognize what they're doing to their bodies," he said.
Now in his second year on the project, Canale said experiments of this type are always ongoing.
"You learn about it and want to inform the public," he said. "We can help other universities by making people aware the harm you're doing to your body by overeating."
The effects of sport and dietary supplements are studied separately from the research of oxidative stress. Before studying a certain supplement, one of the graduate students contacts the company and tells them they are testing it for a certain ingredient.