Effects of 6 weeks of n-3 fatty acids and antioxidant mixture on lipid peroxidation at rest and postexercise

The purpose of this randomized study was to measure the influence of 6 weeks of LCPUFA (600 mg EPA and 400 mg DHA per day) supplementation alone or in association with 30 mg vitamin E, 60 mg vitamin C and 6 mg β-carotene on resting and exercise-induced lipid peroxidation in judoists (n = 36). Blood samples were collected at rest before (T ₁) and after the supplementation period, in preexercise (T ₂) and postexercise (T ₃) conditions, for analysis of α-tocopherol, retinol, lag phase (Lp) before free radical-induced oxidation, maximum rate of oxidation (R _max) during the propagating chain reaction, maximum amount of conjugated dienes (CD_max) accumulated after the propagation phase, and nitric oxide, malondialdehyde and lipoperoxide (POOL) concentrations. Dietary data were collected using a 7-day diet record. There were no significant differences among treatment groups with respect to habitual intakes of energy from fat, carbohydrate, or protein. At T ₁, there were no significant differences among treatment groups with respect to lipid peroxidation, lag phase, and levels of α-tocopherol or retinol. The consumption of an n-3 LC PUFA supplement increased oxidative stress at rest and did not attenuate the exercise-induced oxidative stress. The addition of antioxidants did not prevent the formation of oxidation products at rest. On the contrary, it seems that the combination of antioxidants added to the n-3 LCPUFA supplement led to a decrease in, CD_max, R _max, and POOL and MDA concentrations after a judo training session.