Evaluation of a Zingiber officinale and Bixa orellana Supplement on the Gut Microbiota of Male Athletes: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial

• Published in: Planta medica Vol. 88; no. 13; p. 1245
• Main Authors: Domínguez-Balmaseda, Diego, Bressa, Carlo, Fernández-Romero, Arantxa, de Lucas, Beatriz, Pérez-Ruiz, Margarita, San Juan, Alejandro F, Roller, Marc, Issaly, Nicolas, Larrosa, Mar
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany 01.10.2022
• Subjects: Athletes; Bixaceae; Dietary Supplements; Fatty Acids, Volatile - pharmacology; Feces; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Humans; Interleukin-6 - pharmacology; Lipopolysaccharides - pharmacology; Zingiber officinale
• ISSN: 1439-0221
• DOI: 10.1055/a-1671-5766

The gut microbiota has emerged as a factor that influences exercise performance and recovery. The present study aimed to test the effect of a polyherbal supplement containing ginger and annatto called "ReWin(d)" on the gut microbiota of recreational athletes in a pilot, randomized, triple-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Thirty-four participants who practice physical activity at least three times weekly were randomly allocated to two groups, a ReWin(d) group or a maltodextrin (placebo) group. We evaluated the gut microbiota, the production of short-chain fatty acids, and the serum levels of interleukin-6 and lipopolysaccharide at baseline and after 4 weeks. Results showed that ReWin(d) supplementation slightly increased gut microbiota diversity. Pairwise analysis revealed an increase in the relative abundance of ( -coefficient = 0.013; p = 0.001), ( -coefficient = 0.016; p = 0.016), ( -coefficient = 0.019; p = 0.001), and ( -coefficient = 0.005; p = 0.035) genera in the ReWin(d) group, and a decrease in ( -coefficient = - 0.008; p = 0.009) and the Christensenellaceae R7 group ( -coefficient = - 0.010; p < 0.001). Moreover, the Christensenellaceae R-7 group correlated positively with serum interleukin-6 (ρ = 0.4122; p = 0.032), whereas the genus correlated negatively with interleukin-6 (ρ = - 0.399; p = 0.032). ReWin(d) supplementation had no effect on short-chain fatty acid production or on interleukin-6 or lipopolysaccharide levels.