A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables
Micronutrients are required in many reactions involved in physical activity and exercise. Most physically active people do not meet the body’s needs in terms of micronutrients through diet. The novelty of the present manuscript is the use of an innovative dietary approach to supply micronutrients to...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Nutrients |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/14/2971 |
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| author | Sara Baldassano Maria Rita Polizzi Leo Sabatino Rosalia Caldarella Andrea Macaluso Angelina Alongi Gaetano Felice Caldara Vincenzo Ferrantelli Sonya Vasto |
| author_facet | Sara Baldassano Maria Rita Polizzi Leo Sabatino Rosalia Caldarella Andrea Macaluso Angelina Alongi Gaetano Felice Caldara Vincenzo Ferrantelli Sonya Vasto |
| author_sort | Sara Baldassano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Micronutrients are required in many reactions involved in physical activity and exercise. Most physically active people do not meet the body’s needs in terms of micronutrients through diet. The novelty of the present manuscript is the use of an innovative dietary approach to supply micronutrients to physically active people through biofortified food. Therefore, the key point of this study was to verify whether supplementation with biofortified vegetables—and specifically molybdenum (Mo)-enriched lettuce—in healthy volunteers affects essential regulators of body homeostasis and, specifically, hematological parameters, iron and lipid metabolism, and hepatic function. Twenty-four healthy volunteers were allocated in a double-blinded manner to either a control group that consumed lettuce, or the intervention group, which consumed Mo-enriched lettuce, for 12 days. Blood samples were collected at baseline (T0) and after 12 days (T1). We found that supplementation with Mo-enriched lettuce did not affect hematological parameters, liver function, or lipid metabolism, but significantly improved iron homeostasis by increasing non-binding hemoglobin iron by about 37% and transferrin saturation by about 42%, while proteins of iron metabolism (e.g., transferrin, ferritin, ceruloplasmin) were not affected. The serum molybdenum concentration increased by about 42%. In conclusion, this study shows that consumption of Mo-biofortified lettuce ameliorates iron homeostasis in healthy subjects, and suggests that it could be used as a new nutritional supplementation strategy to avoid iron deficiency in physically active people. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:14:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1f4a2a3518cb4526a894985ed9dd369a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:14:08Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nutrients |
| spelling | doaj.art-1f4a2a3518cb4526a894985ed9dd369a2023-12-01T22:32:13ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432022-07-011414297110.3390/nu14142971A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified VegetablesSara Baldassano0Maria Rita Polizzi1Leo Sabatino2Rosalia Caldarella3Andrea Macaluso4Angelina Alongi5Gaetano Felice Caldara6Vincenzo Ferrantelli7Sonya Vasto8Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali (SAAF), University of Palermo, Viale Delle Scienze, Ed. 5, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, “P. Giaccone” University Hospital, 90128 Palermo, ItalyExperimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, ItalyExperimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, ItalyExperimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, ItalyExperimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyMicronutrients are required in many reactions involved in physical activity and exercise. Most physically active people do not meet the body’s needs in terms of micronutrients through diet. The novelty of the present manuscript is the use of an innovative dietary approach to supply micronutrients to physically active people through biofortified food. Therefore, the key point of this study was to verify whether supplementation with biofortified vegetables—and specifically molybdenum (Mo)-enriched lettuce—in healthy volunteers affects essential regulators of body homeostasis and, specifically, hematological parameters, iron and lipid metabolism, and hepatic function. Twenty-four healthy volunteers were allocated in a double-blinded manner to either a control group that consumed lettuce, or the intervention group, which consumed Mo-enriched lettuce, for 12 days. Blood samples were collected at baseline (T0) and after 12 days (T1). We found that supplementation with Mo-enriched lettuce did not affect hematological parameters, liver function, or lipid metabolism, but significantly improved iron homeostasis by increasing non-binding hemoglobin iron by about 37% and transferrin saturation by about 42%, while proteins of iron metabolism (e.g., transferrin, ferritin, ceruloplasmin) were not affected. The serum molybdenum concentration increased by about 42%. In conclusion, this study shows that consumption of Mo-biofortified lettuce ameliorates iron homeostasis in healthy subjects, and suggests that it could be used as a new nutritional supplementation strategy to avoid iron deficiency in physically active people.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/14/2971dietary supplementsmicronutrientsmolybdenumvegetarian dietsiron homeostasis |
| spellingShingle | Sara Baldassano Maria Rita Polizzi Leo Sabatino Rosalia Caldarella Andrea Macaluso Angelina Alongi Gaetano Felice Caldara Vincenzo Ferrantelli Sonya Vasto A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables Nutrients dietary supplements micronutrients molybdenum vegetarian diets iron homeostasis |
| title | A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables |
| title_full | A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables |
| title_fullStr | A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables |
| title_full_unstemmed | A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables |
| title_short | A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables |
| title_sort | new potential dietary approach to supply micronutrients to physically active people through consumption of biofortified vegetables |
| topic | dietary supplements micronutrients molybdenum vegetarian diets iron homeostasis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/14/2971 |
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