The fate of dietary protein in the gut is determined by microbial and host digestion and utilization. Fermentation of proteins generates bioactive molecules that have wide-ranging health effects on the host. The type of protein can affect amino acid absorption, with animal proteins generally being more efficiently absorbed compared with plant proteins. In contrast to animal proteins, most plant proteins, such as pea protein, are incomplete proteins. Pea protein is low in methionine and contains lower amounts of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), which play a crucial role in muscle health. We hypothesized that probiotic supplementation results in favorable changes in the gut microbiota, aiding the absorption of amino acids from plant proteins by the host. Fifteen physically active men (24.2 ± 5.0 years; 85.3 ± 12.9 kg; 178.0 ± 7.6 cm; 16.7 ± 5.8% body fat) co-ingested 20 g of pea protein with either AminoAlta™, a multi-strain probiotic (5 billion CFU L. paracasei LP-DG® (CNCM I-1572) plus 5 billion CFU L. paracasei LPC-S01 (DSM 26760), SOFAR S.p.A., Italy) or a placebo for 2 weeks in a randomized, double-blind, crossover design, separated by a 4-week washout period. Blood samples were taken at baseline and at 30-, 60-, 120-, and 180-min post-ingestion and analyzed for amino acid content. Probiotic administration significantly increased methionine, histidine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, tyrosine, total BCAA, and total EAA maximum concentrations (Cmax) and AUC without significantly changing the time to reach maximum concentrations. Probiotic supplementation can be an important nutritional strategy to improve post-prandial changes in blood amino acids and to overcome compositional shortcomings of plant proteins. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: ISRCTN38903788

No abstract

The main goal of this study is to analyze the influence of several environmental factors (temperature, precipitation, mode and duration of school transport, perception of physical activity [PA] opportunities, and perceived neighborhood walkability) on adolescent's daily moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels of two European mid-sized cities. Data were collected from a sample of 829 adolescents (49.7% Spanish; 55.2% females; 14.33 ± 0.73 years). Daily meteorological data were collected for the valid days for each subject and MVPA levels were assessed with Actigraph GT3X accelerometer during seven consecutive days. Data were

BackgroundA limited amount of research has demonstrated beneficial effects of caffeine and theanine supplementation for enhancement of mental performance. The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether the acute ingestion of a supplement containing caffeine, theanine and tyrosine improves mental and physical performance in athletes.MethodsTwenty current or former male collegiate athletes (age: 20.5 ± 1.4 y; height: 1.82 ± 0.08 m; weight: 83.9 ± 12.6 kg; body fat: 13.8 ± 5.6%) completed this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial. After familiarization, each participant completed two identical testing sessions with provision of a proprietary dietary supplement (SUP) containing caffeine theanine and tyrosine or a placebo (PL). Within each testing session, participants completed assessments of mental and physical performance before and after provision of SUP or PL, as well as after two rounds of exercise. Assessments were performed using a performance testing device (Makoto Arena) that evaluated multiple aspects of mental and physical performance in response to auditory and visual stimuli. Testing was performed both with the body in a static position and during dynamic movement. General linear models were used to evaluate the effects of SUP and PL on performance.ResultsChanges in movement accuracy during performance assessment were greater following SUP ingestion as compared to PL for both static and dynamic testing (SUP: + 0.4 to 7.5%; PL: − 1.4 to 1.4% on average; p < 0.05). For dynamic testing, the change in number of targets hit was higher and the change in average hit time was lower with SUP as compared to PL (p < 0.05). However, there were no differences between conditions for the changes in number of targets hit or average hit time during static testing. There were no differences in changes of subjective variables during either condition, and performance measures during the two rounds of exercise did not differ between conditions (p > 0.05).DiscussionThe present results indicate that a combination of a low-dose of caffeine with theanine and tyrosine may improve athletes’ movement accuracy surrounding bouts of exhaustive exercise without altering subjective variables. Based on this finding, supplementation with caffeine, theanine and tyrosine could potentially hold ergogenic value for athletes in sports requiring rapid and accurate movements.Trial registrationNCT03019523. Registered 24 January 2017.

Evaluar factores psicológicos en adolescentes, como la percepción de competencia, es importante para desarrollar estrategias en la escuela para incrementar los niveles de actividad física en las clases de educación física y la adherencia a la actividad física. El principal objetivo del estudio fue medir los niveles de actividad física y la percepción de competencia en relación con el género y los contenidos de la educación física desarrollados en un curso escolar. Se realizó un estudio longitudinal durante un curso escolar completo con 20 sujetos de 1º de la ESO (12 chicos y 8 chicas). Los niveles de actividad física se evaluaron mediante acelerometría y la percepción de competencia mediante el cuestionario PSDQ (Marsh, Marco y Abcy, 2002). Los resultados indicaron que la percepción de competencia y la actividad física moderada y vigorosa durante las clases de educación física fueron superiores para los chicos. También se observó que los niveles de actividad física varían en función de los contenidos estudiados siendo superiores en la unidad de baloncesto con respecto a los demás contenidos, tanto en el género masculino como femenino. La percepción de competencia obtuvo diferencias significativas en función de los contenidos únicamente en las chicas, con valores superiores en la unidad de combas. Las diferencias encontradas muestran la importancia del nivel contextual y señalan la necesidad de implementar intervenciones adaptadas al género del alumnado para incrementar la percepción de competencia y, por lo tanto, la adherencia a la actividad física extraescolar.Palabras clave: niveles de actividad física; acelerometría; factores psicológicos; educación física; adolescentes. R e s u m e nCorrespondencia/correspondence: Berta Murillo Pardo Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad San Jorge. España Email: bmurillo@usj.esThe assessment of psychological factors in adolescents, such as perceived competence, is important to develop strategies at school to increase physical activity levels in physical education classes and adhere to physical activity. The main objective of the study was to measure gender-related physical activity levels and perceived competence, and the physical education contents developed during the school year. A longitudinal study was conducted throughout one whole school year with twenty 1st year secondary school level students (12 boys and 8 girls). The physical activity levels were assessed via accelerometer and perceived competence via the PSDQ questionnaire (Marsh, Marco and Abcy, 2002). The results indicated that perceived competence and moderate to vigorous physical activity during physical education classes were higher for boys. It was also observed that physical activity levels vary depending on the contents studied. These levels were higher in the basketball unit with respect to other contents, both in males and females. Perceived competence only obtained significant differences depending on the contents in girls, with higher values in the jumping-rope unit. The differences found sho...

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between TV and computer use, study time, and physical activity, with regard to gender, school, and weekday/weekend. Adolescents (N = 1,609; M age = 14.5 yr., SD = 1.3) reported on physical activity, sedentary behavior, their parents' employment, and environmental factors. The relationship between PA and screen media behaviors was negative on weekdays, while no relationship was found at weekends. Only 30.7% of adolescents met the screen media guidelines on weekdays and 14.6% at weekends. Girls spent more time on study, only showing a positive relationship with physical activity on weekdays. Each type of sedentary behavior has different correlates for weekdays and weekends.

<p>La versión corta del International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ-SF) ha sido recomendada como un método eficiente para evaluar la actividad física (AF), pero su validez no ha sido analizada en adolescentes españoles. Este artículo, el cual está compuesto de dos estudios, pretende en primer lugar testar la validez del IPAQ-SF en una muestra de adolescentes españoles, y en un segundo lugar testar y comparar la validez del IPAQ-SF utilizando una versión modificada del protocolo adaptada a adolescentes.</p><p>Dado que este trabajo se divide en dos estudios, se utilizaron dos muestras independientes. Una muestra de 270 adolescentes en el estudio I (55% chicos), y otra de 151 adolescentes en el estudio II (44.6% chicos), con una edad entre 11 y 14 años de seis institutos de Huesca (España). Los participantes llevaron un acelerómetro durante siete días consecutivos y completaron el IPAQ-SF el último día. Se calculó el coeficiente de correlación de Pearson entre ambos métodos. Se utilizó el método Bland-Altman para proporcionar el error total entre los dos métodos en ambos estudios.</p><p>Se encontraron correlaciones significativas entre el IPAQ-SF y el acelerómetro para la AF moderada, vigorosa, y moderada-vigorosa. La AF moderada-vigorosa fue significativamente sobreestimada por el IPAQ-SF. Los gráficos Bland-Altman mostraron que los resultados del IPAQ-SF realizado con el protocolo modificado obtuvieron mejores niveles de acuerdo para la AF vigorosa y moderada-vigorosa.</p><p>El IPAQ-SF puede ser una herramienta válida para medir la AF en jóvenes adolescentes, especialmente cuando se aplican modificaciones metodológicas en el protocolo de recogida de datos. </p>

<p>Los principales objetivos de este estudio fueron: a) estudiar los niveles de actividad física (AF) según los diferentes puntos de corte utilizados y el género; b) analizar el cumplimiento de las diferentes recomendaciones internacionales de AF según el género y puntos de corte. 95 universitarios, 33 hombres y 62 mujeres (21, 96 años <span style="text-decoration: underline;">+</span> 2,33) llevaron acelerómetro para medir sus niveles de AF utilizando puntos de corte uniaxiales y triaxiales. Los resultados señalan mayores niveles de AF en los hombres para la AF vigorosa, pero no en la moderada. La mayoría de la muestra cumple con las recomendaciones de AF moderada, sin embargo, en la AF vigorosa el cumplimiento es bajo. El análisis de la AF con puntos de corte triaxiales son mayores a los uniaxiales, así como un mayor porcentaje de cumplimiento cuando se utilizan las recomendaciones establecidas por la Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory y la World Health Organization.</p>