BJSM reviews: A–Z of nutritional supplements: dietary supplements, sports nutrition foods and Ergogenic aids for health and performance Part 3

British Journal of Sports Medicine 2009;43:890-892

Until recently we have considered free oxygen radical production in the body to be a solely "negative" occurrence that might be countered by supplementation with antioxidant nutrients. The supposed benefits included improved health and mortality, and for athletes, the extra advantages of enhanced performance through a reduction in exercise-induced damage. In fact, as discussed below, The Cochrane Review¹ found little or no difference in the normal population between antioxidant administration and those taking a placebo. Mortality was, in fact, slightly higher in the antioxidant group. The review focuses on antioxidant supplementation in athletes and includes the possibility that some oxidative species play a positive role in the adaptation to exercis