what is polygonum cuspidatum_what is polygonum cuspidatum

In the randomized, double-blinded crossover study, 11 well-trained male athletes underwent three exhaustive exercise tests after a week of supplementation with a tomato powder, then a lycopene supplement, and then a placebo. Three blood samples (baseline, post-ingestion, and post-exercise) were taken for each of the supplements used, in order to evaluate total antioxidant capacity and variables of lipid peroxidation, such as malondialdehyde (MDA) and 8-isoprostane.

Among the popular nutritional supplements used to optimize exercise recovery by athletes, lycopene, a carotenoid found in tomatoes, is widely used, with clinical research evidencing that pure lycopene supplements are a potent antioxidant which can reduce exercise-induced lipid peroxidation (a mechanism in which free radicals damage cells by “stealing” electrons from lipids in cell membranes).