The effects of vitamin C and E on exercise-induced physiological adaptations: a systematic review and Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition
Q1
Dec 2019
Citations:34
Influential Citations:2
Systematic Reviews / Meta-Analyses
93
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Enhanced Details

Methods
Adults aged ≥18 years with mixed sex and health status (healthy, sedentary to recreationally active; not elite athletes). Randomized controlled trials; aerobic and resistance training contexts; most aerobic trials used parallel-group designs with placebo controls; two resistance-training trials lacked a placebo group; some trials were double-blind.
Intervention
Oral vitamin C 1000 mg/day and vitamin E 400 IU/day taken concurrently with supervised aerobic or resistance training; duration of training programs ranged from 4 weeks to 6 months (some regimens started 4–5 weeks before training).
Results
Vitamin C and/or E supplementation did not significantly alter exercise-induced adaptations in VO2max, endurance performance, lean mass, or muscle strength after aerobic or resistance training. No evidence of benefit or harm; effects did not differ by age. In the absence of deficiency, supplementation is unlikely to enhance training outcomes; more robust, adequately powered trials are needed.
Limitations
Small, underpowered studies with small sample sizes; short duration in many trials; heterogeneity in supplement regimens and training programs; limited representation of elite athletes and women; some trials lacked placebo or double-blind design, affecting risk of bias.

Abstract

Abstract We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials examining the effect of vitamin C and/or E on exercise-induced training adaptations. Medline, Embase and SPORTDiscus databases were searched for articles from...