Systematic Physical Exercise and Spirulina maxima Supplementation Improve Body Composition, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Blood Lipid Profile: Correlations of a Randomized Double-Blind Controlled Trial
Open accessAbstract
Cardiovascular diseases are part of the highly preventable chronic diseases associated with changes in lifestyle. Within them, physical activity, low-fat and high-fiber diets are distinguished as the main support for prevention, even when supplementation with nutraceuticals has become a very common practice. Fifty-two young sedentary men with excess body weight (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg·m−2) were enrolled in a randomized-crossover controlled trial [six weeks of a systematic physical exercise with Spirulina maxima or placebo supplementation (4.5 g·day−1)]. Body composition, blood lipid profile, and maximal oxygen uptake were determined pre/post intervention. Pairwise comparisons showed a significant improvement (p < 0.01) on blood lipid profile in the group of exercise plus Spirulina maxima. Moreover, correlations of absolute changes of BMI, body fat percentage, blood lipids and maximal oxygen uptake were statistically significant (p < 0.01). These results indicate that the Spirulina maxima supplementation could be acting in a synergistic way with exercise due to the enhanced effects on body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, and blood lipid profile. This phenomenon should be considered to reduce risk of cardiovascular disorders. Trial registration: Clinical Trials, NCT02837666 (July 19, 2016).
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Arthrospira platensis supplementation (4.5 g/day) with or without performing a physical exercise program decreased BMI, total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in overweight and obese men.
“Comparing the final vs. the initial values, BMI, total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were decreased. Arthrospira platensis supplementation enhances the hypolipidemic effect of a systematic physical exercise program in men with excess body weight and dyslipidemia [101].”
From Application of Arthrospira platensis for Medicinal Purposes and the Food Industry: A Review of the Literature (2023) · cites this paper as [101]
The Methods identify the supplement as Spirulina maxima at 4.5 g/day, not Arthrospira platensis. The Results report decreased plasma lipids only in the exercise-plus-supplementation group, so they do not support the claim that supplementation without exercise decreased all three listed lipids. The Conclusions support beneficial changes in BMI and the lipid profile in the studied men. (LLM, conf=0.90)
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- Authors
- Hernández-Lepe, M. A., Olivas-Aguirre, F. J., Gómez-Miranda, L. M., Hernández-Torres, R. P., Manríquez-Torres, J. D. J., & Ramos-Jiménez, A.
- Affiliations
- Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (MX)
- Universidad de Sonora (MX)
- Physical Culture Sciences School, Autonomous University of Chihuahua, Chihuahua 32310, Mexico
- Medical and Psychology School, Autonomous University of Baja California, Tijuana 22390, Mexico
- Biomedical Sciences Institute, Autonomous University of Ciudad Juarez, Ciudad Juárez 32310, Mexico
- ORCID
- Venue
- Antioxidants
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2019-10-23
- Volume
- 8
- Issue
- 11
- Pages
- 507
- ISSN
- 2076-3921 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6912262
- OpenAlex
- W2982283880
- Cited by
- 24
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 1
- FWCI
- 1.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- dx.doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Antioxidants (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Rehabilitation › Exercise and Physiological Responses
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Seaweed-derived Bioactive Compounds
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Keywords
- Spirulina maxima, physical activity, body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, lipid profile, VO2max, nutraceuticals, sedentary men, overweight, cardiovascular disease prevention
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