Exercise upregulates salivary amylase in humans (Review)

Abstract

The secretion of salivary α-amylase is influenced by adrenergic regulation of the sympathetic nervous system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis; thus, exercise affects the levels of salivary α-amylase. Granger et al published a review in 2007 that focused attention on salivary α-amylase. In addition, a portable system for monitoring salivary α-amylase activity was launched in Japan at the end of 2005. The correlation between exercise and salivary α-amylase has since been extensively investigated. The present review summarizes relevant studies published in the English and Japanese literature after 2006. A search of the PubMed and CiNii databases identified 54 articles, from which 15 original articles were selected. The findings described in these publications indicate that exercise consistently increases mean salivary α-amylase activities and concentrations, particularly at an intensity of >70% VO2max in healthy young individuals. Thus, these studies have confirmed that salivary α-amylase levels markedly increase in response to physical stress. Salivary α-amylase levels may therefore serve as an effective indicator in the non-invasive assessment of physical stress.

Community Gardens as Health Promoters: Effects on Mental and Physical Stress Levels in Adults with and without Mental Disabilities

“…Previous studies have indicated that the sAA levels of people who developed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following the East Japan earthquake decreased after taking care of plants (15 min/day) [55] and increased following exercise [62]. Similarly, in our current study, we found that the case group had reduced sAA levels after carrying out community garden activities despite no significant differences.…”

Longitudinal and immediate effect of Kundalini Yoga on salivary levels of cortisol and activity of alpha-amylase and its effect on perceived stress

“…Furthermore, the activity of this enzyme in saliva is affected by physical exercise, having a direct relationship with the exercise intensity. [112025] As for the psychological component, marked alterations in alpha-amylase levels were detected after applying stressors such as skydiving, academic tests, or stressful videos by different research groups[112627] that could be an explanation for our results because our study finished in period of academic exams.…”

Circadian variation of salivary immunoglobin A, alpha-amylase activity and mood in response to repeated double-poling sprints in hypoxia

“…However, since the production of sAA is regulated by the sympathetic nervous system (Rohleder and Nater 2009), exercise acutely enhances this activity substantially, especially at exercise intensities above 70 % of individual maximal oxygen uptake (Allgrove et al 2008;Koibuchi and Suzuki 2014). In this context, sAA activity correlates positively with plasma levels of catecholamine (Li and Gleeson 2004), anaerobic metabolism and blood lactate concentration (de Oliveira et al 2010).…”

“…Therefore, assessment of sAA activity together with mood provides a reliable indicator of the exercise-induced psychological stress-response and mucosal immune function (Papacosta and Nassis 2011). While sAA activity rises acutely in connection with exercise (Allgrove et al 2008;Koibuchi and Suzuki 2014), it is expected to decrease chronically as intensive training progresses to chronic fatigue, impaired performance and non-functional overreaching (Papacosta and Nassis 2011). Thus, the question remains as to whether sAA activity and mood decrease when athletes are stressed by hypoxia in combination with high-intensity training for a prolonged period of time.…”