Bananas as an Energy Source During Exercise: a Metabolomics Approach

Comparison of Bananas and Gatorade on Performance and Exercise-induced Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, and Changes in Immune Function in Endurance Athletes

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT01581190

Enrollment

Registered

2012-04-20

Start date

2011-09-30

Completion date

2011-11-30

Last updated

2012-04-20

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Intense Exercise

Keywords

Bananas, Exercise, Metabolomics, Oxidative stress, Inflammation, Immune function

Brief summary

This study compared the acute effect of ingesting bananas (BAN) versus a 6% carbohydrate drink (CHO) on 75-km cycling performance and post-exercise inflammation, oxidative stress, and innate immune function using traditional and metabolomics-based profiling.

Detailed description

Trained cyclists (N=14) completed two 75-km cycling time trials (randomized, crossover) while ingesting BAN or CHO (0.2 g/kg carbohydrate every 15 min). Pre-, post-, and 1-h-post-exercise blood samples were analyzed for glucose, granulocyte (GR) and monocyte (MO) phagocytosis (PHAG) and oxidative burst activity, nine cytokines, F2-isoprostanes, ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP), and metabolic profiles using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTBananas versus 6% carbohydrate beverage

Trained cyclists (N=14) completed two 75-km cycling time trials (randomized, crossover) while ingesting BAN or CHO (0.2 g/kg carbohydrate every 15 min).

Study design

Allocation

Intervention model

SINGLE_GROUP

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

MALE

Age

18 Years to 45 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Male * Ages 18-45 years * Cyclists, road racing experience. * Willing to avoid the use of supplements, herbs, medications during the study.

Exclusion criteria

* Female * Over the age of 45 years * No cycling racing experience * Using supplements and medications during the study

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Performance and fuel substrate utilization as measured through metabolomics	Up to 6 months	Will measure shifts in metabolites following 75-km cycling while ingesting bananas or 6% carbohydrate beverage. The shift in metabolites will be assessed using GC-MS. Time frame from date of randomization until the last samples are collected and analyzed will be up to six months.

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Exercise-induced inflammation.	up to 6 months	Cytokine panel (IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-alpha) before and after cycling 75-km; measured with Meso Scale Discovery in pg/ml. Time frame from randomization until the last samples are collected and analyzed will be up to six months.

Countries

United States

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026