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February 25th, 2016

2/25/2016

How to avoid Gastro-intestinal issues during the London marathon ?

1/27/2016

Gastrointestinal complaints are very common among endurance athletes and are one of the main causes of underperformance in endurance events. Runner Gastrointestinal tract (GIT) distress has two main factors:

Diversion of blood flow from the GIT to the muscles: When exercising at high intensity, muscles need to be supplied by oxygen-enriched blood. As such, our body diverts blood flow away from our internal organs, like the gastrointestinal tract, and directs it to the exercising muscles instead. This leads to delay of GIT emptying.

Dehydration: Dehydration leads to the aggravation of gastrointestinal complaints during exercise. Dehydration also leads to a delayed Gastro-intestinal emptying.

The combination of reduced blood flow and dehydration puts the colon under great pressure. This can result to symptoms such as stomach cramps, vomiting, nausea and bloating. However, appropriate nutritional choices can reduce the risk of gastrointestinal discomfort during exercise. Here are recommendations that may help you minimize the risk of experiencing GI problems during your race:

Hydration strategy: Drink plenty of water and include electrolytes.
Training with a nutrition strategy can improve tolerance and stomach comfort: Test and plan carefully your meals & snacks
Stress management: In the months and weeks leading to your race practice the exact same warm-up before every workout. On race day, repeat the exact routine you used for every workout.
Pre-race diet: Switch to low-fiber diet two to three days prior to race day.
Eat at least 2 to 3 hours before the start of the race.

Carefully choose sport drink: Avoid high fructose drinks. A combination glucose/fructose may be more appropriate to avoid GIT problems.
Avoid the use of aspirin and NSAIDs drugs like ibuprofen: Recent research points to a strong correlation between non-steroidal anti- inflammatory drug use and vomiting during endurance events.

Prado De Oliveira,E., Burini,R.C., Jeukendruo,A., (2014) .Gastrointestinal Complaints During Exercise: Prevalence, Etiology, and Nutritional Recommendations. Sports Medicine. 44 ( 1), 79-85.

Van Wijck,K., Lenaerts,K., Van Bijnen, A., Boonen,B. Van Loon, L., , LUC J. C; Dejong,C., (2012) Aggravation of Exercise-induced intestinal injury by Ibuprofen in athletes. Medicine & science in Sports & Exercise. 44 (12) p 2257-2262.

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Want to control your weight: Avoid nutrients deficiencies!

10/5/2015

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Background

Many people being already mindful of what they eat, exercising regularly but are still seeing no improvements in their biomarkers such as blood pressure, blood sugar or cholesterol.
A new report suggests that inflammation induced by nutrients deficiencies maybe in cause.

Research overview

43 healthy lean and overweight/ obese adults, who served as their own controls consumed twice daily nutrient-dense bar (fibre, iron, B vitamins, magnesium, zinc,) intended to fill gaps in western diets without other dietary/ lifestyle requirements.

It appeared that People who were overweight/obese moved in a healthier metabolic direction (e.g., improved HDL, LDL, insulin, glucose, etc.), and some lost weight by just eating small, low-calorie, nutrient bars each day for two months, without any additional requirements.

However, the improvements were mostly seen in people with lower levels of inflammation; high chronic inflammation prevented people from experiencing these improvements. [1]

Take home message

This study highlights two important findings:

Lowering inflammation in the body may help weight loss efforts and get you healthier. Try eating more anti-inflammatory food such as turmeric, ginger, polyphenol rich berries, nuts ,cruciferous vegetables,..

For people with lower inflammation levels, filling gaps in the diet with nutrients, vitamins, and minerals vital may help your biomarkers improved (cholesterol, blood sugar,.. ) meaning you need a nutrient rich diet.

McCann,J.C., Shigenaga, M.K., Mietus-Snyder,M.L., Lal, A., Suh,J.H., Krauss,R.M., Gildengorin,G.L., & al., A multicomponent nutrient bar promotes weight loss and improves dyslipidemia and insulin resistance in the overweight/obese: chronic inflammation blunts these improvements. The FASEB Journal, 2015; 29 (8): 3287

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February 25th, 2016

How to avoid Gastro-intestinal issues during the London marathon ?

Want to control your weight: Avoid nutrients deficiencies!

Nathalie Vauterin, Nutritionist

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