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Fish Oil Supplementation Reduces Severity of Exercise-induced Bronchoconstriction in Elite Athletes

Department of Kinesiology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana; School of Sport Science, Physical Education, and Recreation, University of Wales Institute, Cardiff; and Section of Respiratory Medicine, University of Wales College of Medicine, University Hospital of Wales and Llandough Hospital, NHS Trust, Penarth, United Kingdom

Correspondence and requests for reprints should be addressed to Timothy D. Mickleborough, Ph.D., Department of Kinesiology, Indiana University, 1025 East 7th Street, HPER 112, Bloomington, IN 47401. E-mail: tmickleb{at}indiana.edu

In elite athletes, exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) may respond to dietary modification, thereby reducing the need for pharmacologic treatment. Ten elite athletes with EIB and 10 elite athletes without EIB (control subjects) participated in a randomized, double-blind crossover study. Subjects entered the study on their normal diet, and then received either fish oil capsules containing 3.2 g eicosapentaenoic acid and 2.2 g docohexaenoic acid (n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid [PUFA] diet; n = 5) or placebo capsules containing olive oil (placebo diet; n = 5) taken daily for 3 weeks. Diet had no effect on preexercise pulmonary function in either group or on postexercise pulmonary function in control subjects. However, in subjects with EIB, the n-3 PUFA diet improved postexercise pulmonary function compared with the normal and placebo diets. FEV₁ decreased by 3 ± 2% on n-3 PUFA diet, 14.5 ± 5% on placebo diet, and 17.3 ± 6% on normal diet at 15 minutes postexercise. Leukotriene (LT)E₄, 9, 11ß-prostaglandin F₂, LTB₄, tumor necrosis factor–, and interleukin-1ß, all significantly decreased on the n-3 PUFA diet compared with normal and placebo diets and after the exercise challenge. These data suggest that dietary fish oil supplementation has a markedly protective effect in suppressing EIB in elite athletes, and this may be attributed to their antiinflammatory properties.

Key Words: exercise-induced asthma • diet • omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids • cytokines • eicosanoids

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