EXT was shown to improve asthma symptoms, QoL, exercise capacity, BHR, EIB, and FEV1 in asthmatics and improvements in BHR explained part of the improvement in QoL and exercise capacity. Thus, physical activity should be recommended as a supplementary therapy to medication. However, more well controlled studies should be performed assessing the relationship of physical activity, QoL, airway hyperreactivity, lung function and especially airway inflammation as well as medication intake.

The consumption of green tea has been generally associated with beneficial effects on human whole-body metabolism and recent investigations with animals indicate favorable effects of green tea extracts (GTE) on energy metabolism during exercise and aerobic exercise performance. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a three-week supplementation with GTE on human energy metabolism during submaximal cycling exercise. In a randomized, double-blind crossover setting, ten healthy endurance-trained men exercised for 2 hours at 50 % W(max) before and after three weeks of placebo or GTE supplementation (GTE containing about 160 mg x day(-1) total catechins, of which about 70 mg x day(-1) was epigallocatechin-3-gallate). The GTE supplementation did not influence indices of fat and energy metabolism (fatty acids, 3-beta-hydroxybutyrate, triacylglycerol, low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, lactate, glucose, oxygen uptake, respiratory exchange ratio, energy expenditure), inflammation processes (interleukin-6, C-reactive protein), and oxidative stress (thiobarbituric-acid reactive substances, oxidized low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol), but plasma creatine kinase concentration at rest and during exercise was significantly lower (p = 0.039) and high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol concentration at rest was significantly higher (p = 0.043) compared to placebo. In conclusion, these results suggest only slight effects on whole-body metabolism after supplementation with GTE.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of three-week consumption of green tea extract (GTE) supplementation on time trial performance and metabolism during cycling in endurance athletes. Nine endurance-trained men participated in this double-blind and placebo-controlled cross-over study. At the end of the supplementation period with GTE (159 mg/day total catechins) or placebo, respectively, subjects cycled at 50 % of the individual maximal power output for 2 hours, followed by a 30-minute time trial. Respiratory gas exchange, fatty acids, 3-beta-hydroxybutyrate, lactate, glucose, interleukin-6, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, creatine kinase, and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured 1 hour before, during, and 1 hour after the exercise test. Blood lipids were measured at rest before cycling. There was no significant effect on performance, energy metabolism, or any other measured parameter, except for CRP, which was significantly reduced (p = 0.045) after GTE supplementation compared to placebo. GTE supplementation did not affect time trial performance and energy metabolism in endurance-trained men in the non-fasting state. Further studies with athletes, particularly in the fed state, but with higher GTE doses, are needed to address the question whether green tea may influence energy metabolism and performance in athletes.

Background: To safely treat lung tumors using particle radiation therapy (PRT), motion-mitigation strategies are of critical importance to ensure precise irradiation. Therefore, we compared applicability, effectiveness, reproducibility, and subjects' acceptance of enhanced deep-inspiration breath hold (eDIBH) with high-frequency percussive ventilation (HFPV) by MRI assessment within 1 month.Methods: Twenty-one healthy subjects (12 males/9 females; age: 49.5 ± 5.8 years; BMI: 24.7 ± 3.3 kg/m−2) performed two 1.5 T MRI scans in four visits at weekly intervals under eDIBH and HFPV conditions, accompanied by daily, home-based breath-hold training and spirometric assessments over a 3-week period. eDIBH consisted of 8-min 100% O2 breathing (3 min resting ventilation, 5 min controlled hyperventilation) prior to breath hold. HFPV was set at 200–250 pulses min−1 and 0.8–1.2 bar. Subjects' acceptance and preference were evaluated by questionnaire. To quantify inter- and intrafractional changes, a lung distance metric representing lung topography was computed for 10 reference points: a motion-invariant spinal cord and nine lung structure contours (LSCs: apex, carina, diaphragm, and six vessels as tumor surrogates distributed equally across the lung). To parameterize individual LSC localizability, measures of their spatial variabilities were introduced and lung volumes calculated by automated MRI analysis.Results: eDIBH increased breath-hold duration by > 100% up to 173 ± 73 s at visit 1, and to 217 ± 67 s after 3 weeks of home-based training at visit 4 (p < 0.001). Measures of vital capacity and lung volume remained constant over the 3-week period. Two vessels in the lower lung segment and the diaphragm yielded a two- to threefold improved positional stability with eDIBH, whereby absolute distance variability was significantly smaller for five LSCs; ≥70% of subjects showed significantly better intrafractional lung motion mitigation under reproducible conditions with eDIBH compared with HFPV with smaller ranges most apparent in the anterior-posterior and cranial-caudal directions. Approximately 80% of subjects preferred eDIBH over HFPV, with “less discomfort” named as most frequent reason.Conclusions: Both, eDIBH, and HFPV were well-tolerated. eDIBH duration was long enough to allow for potential PRT. Variability in lung volume was smaller and position of lung structures more precise with eDIBH. Subjects preferred eDIBH over HFPV. Thus, eDIBH is a very promising tool for lung tumor therapy with PRT, and further investigation of its applicability in patients is warranted.

Despite different work history, RMSIT appears to place a metabolic load on respiratory muscles similarly to RMET and could therefore be considered a time-saving and safe training alternative.