The acute effect of ingesting a quercetin-based supplement on exercise-induced inflammation and immune changes in runners.

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial looks at Quercetin.

This study tested the acute anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating influence of a quercetin-based supplement consumed by endurance athletes 15 min before an intense 2-hr run.

Subjects ingested either 4 quercetin-based chews (Q-chew) or placebo chews (PL) 15 min before the runs.

Who Took Part

According to the abstract, 11 men were involved.

PubMed indexes the participants as adults, both men and women.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and crossover.

The men were allocated by chance, so the Quercetin group and the comparison group should start out alike.

Neither the men nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Quercetin, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

The comparison arm used a placebo, so changes seen with Quercetin could be set against what happens without it.

In the crossover set-up each of the men took both Quercetin and the comparison in turn, acting as their own control.

What Was Measured

This study tested the acute anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating influence of a quercetin-based supplement consumed by endurance athletes 15 min before an intense 2-hr run.

Topics PubMed links to this paper include C-Reactive Protein, Creatine Kinase, Cytokines, Dietary Supplements, Docosahexaenoic Acids, Eicosapentaenoic Acid and Immune System.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Quercetin in 11 men.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

The publication is from 2011 (International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism), a journal based in United States.

More context: all human trials.