NUTRITION

Gillian Woodward

Antioxidants

and Sport

What are anti-oxidants?

They are naturally occurring chemicals in our food and include some vitamins – mainly C and E for example, as well as other compounds such as polyphenols, flavenoids and indoles.

Why are they relevant to the exercising population?

Antioxidants are needed to help fight the damaging effects of the free radicals that our body cells produce. Free radicals are the result of incomplete reduction of oxygen which occurs during energy production (but only at a rate of about 2-5%). Several good and bad things make us produce more free radicals – exercise, smoking, pollution, infections and UV light, to name a few. Obviously exercise or training is the good guy in this list! When there is excess free radical production or insufficient protection against them (by the antioxidants) there can be a deterioration in the immune system as well as other effects like ageing, cancer and atherosclerosis, all of which we might like to avoid. A sudden increase in intensity of training could possibly result in excess free radical production, so care may be needed to make sure antioxidant intake is higher than normal around this time.

How can we boost our intake of antioxidants?

The answer does not have to involve drinking buckets of green tea, although it is a proven source of flavonols, one of the antioxidant groups. Many fruits and vegetables are rich in the antioxidant compounds. Fruits that contain most include berries, red grapes, mangoes, apricots and citrus. Vegetables like broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, carrots and pumpkin are good sources too. Legumes like soy, kidney or pinto beans are good as are the nuts – particularly pecans, pistachios, walnuts and hazelnuts. Seeds and wholegrains are yet another good supplier of these valuable nutrients. Drinks that contain antioxidants include tea (especially green) and coffee (both brewed and instant) as well as red wine of course! Dark chocolate is the other ‘extra’ food that has some (but not a high concentration) but don’t forget the high saturated fat content that might be adding weight to your waist or hips. (“Extras” are the foods that don’t really fit into any of the main 5 food groups – like high fat savoury and sweet foods or drinks and, of course, alcohol etc.)

Try these ideas to boost your antioxidant intake:

1. Have cooked tomatoes and mushrooms (or other leftover vegetable combinations) on wholegrain toast for breakfast, followed by an orange; 2. Eat some grapes or strawberries for morning tea; 3. Put lots of salad vegetables in your sandwich or have baked beans on multigrain toast plus a berry smoothie for lunch; 4. Nibble dried fruit and nuts for an afternoon snack; 5. Pile your dinner plate high (at least 2/3 of it) with red, green and orange vegetables – carrots, capsicum, eggplant, broccoli, etc; 6. Finish off with fresh fruit salad or berries with low fat icecream, yoghurt or custard for dessert; 7. For a night cap, have a hot cocoa drink or maybe even a small piece of dark chocolate (20g) as a treat a few times a week; 8. If you like to drink tea (including green) or coffee in moderation during the day, this will add to your total antioxidant intake. Don’t expect that eating a high antioxidant diet will protect you totally from infection or, in fact, improve your athletic performance, but it may just help you to fend off some unwanted ills that could otherwise attack if your immunity is down. In summary, when you are training hard include more antioxidant rich foods and drinks during your day.

Gillian Woodward is a Practising Dietician and has been providing advice in the field for over 25 years. She has been an orienteer since 1984.