Effects of extra-virgin olive oil enriched with E-vitamin and Q10-coenzyme on the heart rate variability and plasma antioxidant status in athletes Angelo Cataldo, Giuseppe Russo, Diego Bellavia, Daniele Zangla, Maurizio La Guardia, Marco Giammanco, Danila Di Majo, Marcello Traina Dipartimento di Scienze Motorie DISMOT, Università degli Studi di Palermo Figure 1: mean basal values at the beginning, then after 30 days since supplementation. Plasma antioxidant values were determined by means of the crocin bleaching assay. The value of the ratio Ka/Kc is a dimensionless quantity that indicates the antioxidant capacity of the plasma to interact with the peroxyl radical. Each value represents the mean value ± standard deviation of five replications. OBJECTIVES: To examine whether the assumption of extra virgin olive oil enriched with E-vitamin and Q10-coenzyme may improve the plasma anti-oxidant/pro-oxidant balance and be associated with favorable changes in heart rate variability (HRV). METHODS: Four male athletes, mean age 22 (range 21-24), were recruited. They assumed 20 ml per day of the integrator (20 mg Q10 and 15 mg Vit E) for one month. The plasma antioxidant capacity (AC) was evaluated by the crocin bleaching assay. The frequency-domain analysis of HRV was carried out using Cardioline Cube recorder and specific software to obtain, from an autoregressive power spectrum approach, the power in normalized units (nu) of the low-(LF) and high-frequency (HF) bands and LF/HF ratio. HRV was recorded between 8.00 and 13.00, after a 5-min rest, for 10-15 min with the subject seated. We used for the HRV calculation short-term (5 min) interval between the 3rd-8th min of the recording. Data, shown as mean values ± standard error of the mean, was collected before the integration, then after one month since the assumption and finally after one month since the wash-out. RESULTS: An increase of the AC was observed after supplementation (from 582.7 ± 121 to 890.2 ± 253). Furthermore, a reduction in the LF/HF (from 9,1 ± 6 to 3.6 ± 2) and in LFnu (from 72,1 ± 9 to 63,7 ± 8) have been observed and there was also an increase in the HFnu (from 19,9 ± 7 to 25,1 ± 6). After 30 days since of wash-out, though plasma antioxidant values have returned close to beginning, the reduction in the LF/HF and in LFnu, and increased HFnu, were maintained. Figure 2: mean basal values of LF/HF, LFnu and HFnu, at the beginning, after 30 days since supplementation and after 30 days since the wash-out. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the extra-virgin olive oil enriched with E-vitamin and Q10-coenzyme increased the AC and induced favorable changes in cardiac autonomic function. These results are preliminary observations that need to be confirmed. REFERENCES: - Lahiri M K, Kannankeril P J, Goldberger J J: Assessment of autonomic function in cardiovascular disease: physiological basis and prognostic implications. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2008; 51: 1725-33 - Traina M, Cataldo A, Bellavia D, Zangla D, Russo G, Metodi di studio della variabilità cardiaca. Journal of Sport Sciences and Sport Law 2010; 1(2): 107-116 - Leeuwenburgh C, Heinecke JW. Oxidative stress and antioxidants in exercise. Curr Med Chem. 2001; 8(7): 829-38 angelo.cataldo@tin.it