Effects of 14-weeks betaine supplementation on pro-inflammatory cytokines and hematology status in professional youth soccer players during a competition season: a double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial
Metadatos
Mostrar el registro completo del ítemEditorial
BMC
Materia
Nonfunctional over-reaching Youth sports Immune system Football IL-1β
Fecha
2021-06-05Referencia bibliográfica
Nobari, H... [et al.]. Effects of 14-weeks betaine supplementation on pro-inflammatory cytokines and hematology status in professional youth soccer players during a competition season: a double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 18, 42 (2021). [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-021-00441-5]
Resumen
Objective: Systemic elevations in pro-inflammatory cytokines are a marker of non-functional over reaching, and
betaine has been shown to reduce the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines in vitro. The aim of this study was
to investigate the effects of betaine supplementation on tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukins-1 beta (IL-
1β), − 6 (IL-6) and the complete blood cell (CBC) count in professional youth soccer players during a competitive
season.
Methods: Twenty-nine soccer players (age, 15.5 ± 0.3 years) were randomly divided into two groups based on
playing position: betaine group (BG, n = 14, 2 g/day) or placebo group (PG, n = 15). During the 14-week period,
training load was matched and well-being indicators were monitored daily. The aforementioned cytokines and CBC
were assessed at pre- (P1), mid- (P2), and post- (P3) season.
Results: Significant (p < 0.05) group x time interactions were found for TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6. These variables were
lower in the BG at P2 and P3 compared to P1, while IL-1β was greater in the PG at P3 compared to P1 (p = 0.033).
The CBC count analysis showed there was significant group by time interactions for white blood cells (WBC), red
blood cells (RBC), hemoglobin (Hb), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC). WBC demonstrated
increases at P3 compared to P2 in PG (p = 0.034); RBC was less at P3 compared to P1 in BG (p = 0.020); Hb was
greater at P2 compared to P1, whilst it was less at P3 compared to P3 for both groups. MCHC was greater at P3
and P2 compared to P1 in BG, whereas MCHC was significantly lower at P3 compared to P2 in the PG (p = 0.003).
Conclusion: The results confirmed that 14 weeks of betaine supplementation prevented an increase in proinflammatory
cytokines and WBC counts. It seems that betaine supplementation may be a useful nutritional
strategy to regulate the immune response during a fatiguing soccer season.