Podcast listener Greg asked: “I listened to your podcast that included FRS because I was very interested in the ACTIVE ingredient, Quercitin. Instead I got what everybody knows about the woes of sugar and it’s substitutes. Why no comment on Quercitin?”
Great question, Greg!
In an article last month, metabolism mastermind John Gilbert, who works at our Spokane, Washington office, wrote an interesting article on “Alternatives to the Flu Shot”, in which he talked about the potential benefits of quercetin for immune system support.
It had been my intention to mention quercetin in the podcast episode during which FRS energy drinks were mentioned…but I didn’t! So with assistance once again from John, here’ s the Addendum to Podcast Episode #33.
Just go here for the audio version: [display_podcast]
Quercetin is a chemical found in red apples and onions. It can be isolated and added to dietary supplements, such as FRS energy drinks.
Quercetin Claims:
• Neutralizing free radicals before they damage cells because of its antioxidant properties (although antioxidant supplementation to improve athletic performance is not substantiated conclusively by research)
• Sustained Energy Boost
• Allergy Combatant
• Anti-inflammatory
• Alleviate bruising, varicose veins, and improve fragile capillaries
• Helping combat prostate cancer
• Enhancing cardiovascular health by countering the oxidation of bad cholesterol
• Improve lung functioning and a host of respiratory diseases (ex: bronchitis, asthma, emphysema, etc)
Quercetin may offer a benefit to athletes by:
• Enhancing mitochondrial capacity, increasing maximal endurance capacity and voluntary exercise output (as seen in enhanced voluntary wheel running in mice)
• Inhibiting histamine production and release, along with other inflammatory/allergic mediators (considered natural anti-histamine)
• Subsequently inhibiting histamine production/release allows for greater hyperemia to muscles post-exercise than in the presence of histamine, which would augment increased muscle glucose uptake than if histamine were in the presence of the post exercise muscle
• May be effective in decreasing the susceptibility to respiratory infection that is associated with stressful exercise
• Help treat erectile dysfunction through the inhibition of phosphodiesterase 5A (Research was conducted with the exact FRS 1000 drink)
However…
• There is no reliable clinical evidence that quercetin can prevent cancer or treat cancer in humans at this point in time.
• When taking antibiotics Quercetin is contraindicated with antibiotics; it may interact with type of medicinal antibiotic (fluoroquinolones), as quercetin competitively binds to bacterial DNA gyrase.
• Quercetin seems to work better when used in conjunction with bromelain, a digestive enzyme found in pineapples, particularly for allergies and inflammation.
So Quercetin might do a whole lot of things for athletes, however, more scientific research is necessary to support many of the claims.
I personally plan on continuing to take the Delta-E energy powder that I currently use, which has no artificial sweeteners or preservatives and is extremely low in carbohydrates and sugars. And I’ll continue to get my Quercetin from my daily apple and the sauteed red onions which I frequently consume.
And that’s the skinny on Quercetin!
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