薬理と治療

Abstract

Objectives　Physical activity in daily life often induces oxidative stress, which causes fatigue. Accordingly, antioxidants are candidate anti-fatigue substances. As S-allylcysteine has strong anti-oxidative effects, we investigated the ability of S-allylcysteine-containing capsules to attenuate the fatigue sensation induced by mild physical load in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial. Methods　Twenty-four healthy volunteers were randomized to oral administration of either capsules containing 2.0 mg of S-allylcysteine（test food） or placebo for 4 weeks. Subjective fatigue sensation was examined using the visual analogue scale（VAS）during mild physical load and the recovery period. In addition, we measured changes in the autonomic nervous system by frequency analysis of a-a intervals on accelerated plethysmography（APG）waves to elucidate the mechanism of action. Results　On the VAS, the test food group had a significantly lower fatigue sensation score during the recovery period after physical load than the placebo group. On the frequency analysis of a-a intervals on APG, the test food group had significantly higher parasympathetic nerve activity during the recovery period. Conclusions　These results suggest that the capsules containing 2.0 mg of S-allylcysteine can improve fatigue sensation induced by mild physical load and correct the imbalance in autonomic nervous function accompanying fatigue. Therefore, we consider S-allylcysteine to be a useful substance to attenuate fatigue sensation after physical activity in daily life.