Welcome, at SP2 Life we believe in the importance of sharing recent research regarding the health benefits of Spirulina. The article we will be covering today is The Ergogenic and Antioxidant Effects of Spirulina Supplementation in Humans which was published in 2009.
The study concluded that Spirulina supplementation significantly decreases the time to fatigue. How does spirulina achieve this?
Taking spirulina increased fat oxidation rate and decreased carbohydrate oxidation rate. What does this mean? This means that the body metabolized fat stores at a faster rate than carbohydrate stores. This switch to burning fat first is critical for endurance athletes as it makes their carbohydrate stores last longer giving them more energy when they need it the most. Additionally, spirulina increased Glutathione (GSH) concentrations. GSH is an antioxidant that is found in spirulina that prevents damage to important cellular components.
The study below shows how SP2 Life can increase your exercise performance, substrate metabolism, and blood redux status.
The study conducted in this research paper was to see how Spirulina affected
Nine moderately trained males took part in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, counterbalanced crossover study. Each subject received either Spirulina (6 g) or placebo for 4 wk. Each subject ran on a treadmill at an intensity corresponding to 70%–75% of their V˙O2 max for 2 h and then at 95% V˙O2 max to exhaustion. Exercise performance and respiratory quotient during exercise were measured after both placebo and Spirulina supplementation.Blood samples were drawn before, immediately after, and at 1, 24, and 48 h after exercise.
"Many positive claims for spirulina are based on research done on individual nutrients that spirulina contains, such as various antioxidants, rather than on direct research using spirulina. This is one of the few studies where humans were supplemented with spirulina.
We report for the first time that supplementation of spirulina for 4 wk increased exercise performance, possibly through an increase in fat oxidation rate, and increased GSH levels. The reasons behind the enhanced performance and increased fat oxidation after spirulina supplementation are poorly understood, and more research is needed to elucidate this. Particularly, the effect of spirulina on mitochondrial function and A oxidation in conjunction with inflammation and oxidative stress requires further investigation."