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| Supplements
for Women |
Women and Exercise - Supplement Use
Specific Uses for Women
Ones to Avoid |
Supplements and Exercise
 As
a result of the physiological differences, it's likely that
various nutritional supplements may not act exactly the same
in women as in men. In general, although there is a dearth of
studies on the varying effects of ergogenic supplements between
the sexes, it seems that many of the nutritional supplements
have a similar biological effect on exercise in both men and
women. However, there have been a small number of studies that
have shown some significant differences in the effect of some
supplements.
Creatine
For
example a recent study showed that creatine had little effect
in women swimmers although it increased performance in men swimmers.i
The authors of this study found that creatine supplementation
over a two-week period gave male college swimmers increased
short bursts of energy, improving their performance during short-distance
swims. The performance improvement seen in the male swimmers
was not seen in the female swimmers. Female swimmers who took
creatine supplements experienced no significant improvement
in their athletic performance, as measured by their times for
ten 25-yard swims or for six 50-meter swims, the results indicate.
Beneficial
Uses
Regardless
of the lower use of most nutritional supplements by women, even
women who exercise, the use of nutritional supplements can provide
some real world benefits to women in various situations and
circumstances. For example the use of a good vitamin
and mineral supplement would help eliminate possible frank
and marginal deficiencies in some vitamins and minerals such
as folic acid, B12, zinc, iron and chromium.
 Because
women also have lower body water content than men of comparable
size, it's important that they are careful not to become dehydrated,
taking special care to stay hydrated during exercise and replenish
water loss after exercise. While drinking a few glasses of water
prior to training is a good preventative, using a rehydration
drink such as Gatorade, Power Drink or
Electrosol during and after exercising can supply the body
with all the nutrients it needs to maximize performance. This
includes not only electrolytes and water but also vitally important
performance boosting and reparative ingredients.
In
fact, women can use nutritional supplements but perhaps be not
aware of it. Many of the slimming aids, all the way from the
meal replacements to the special wafers and pills, are in fact
nutritional supplements. Viewing supplements in this way gives
us a whole new and more realistic perspective on the use of
nutritional supplements by women of all ages. |
| Women
and Exercise-Supplement Use | Specific
Uses for Women | Ones
to Avoid |
i
(International Journal of Sport Nutrition 1999;9:251-262.) |
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Dr. Di Pasquale is a licensed physician in Ontario, Canada, focusing on Nutrition and Sports Medicine, as well as a world class athlete for over twenty years... [more]
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