Due to copyright issues, an electronic copy of the thesis must be ordered from the faculty. For the faculty to have time to process the order, the order must be received by the faculty at the latest 2 days before the public defence. Orders received later than 2 days before the defence will not be processed. After the public defence, please address any inquiries regarding the thesis to the candidate.
Trial Lecture on a chosen topic – time and place
See Trial Lecture.
Trial Lecture on a given topic – time and place
See Trial Lecture.
Adjudication committee
- First opponent: Professor Joanna Bowtell, University of Exeter, UK
- Second opponent: Professor Asker Jeukendrup, mysportscience Ltd, UK
- Third member and chair of the evaluation committee: Associate Professor Frode Armador Norheim, University of Oslo
Chair of the Defence
Professor Stine Marie Ulven, University of Oslo
Summary
Altitude training is used by most endurance athletes to increase haemoglobin mass (Hbmass), and thereby improve the blood’s oxygen carrying capacity and endurance performance. Altitude training elevates the risk of immunological disturbances and oxidative stress and seems to increase certain dietary requirements (energy, carbohydrate, fluid, iron, antioxidants) as outlined in the international Olympic Committee (IOC)’s dietary recommendations.
The major aim of the thesis was to investigate whether increased intake of antioxidant-rich foods, served as snacks in between meals, affected the physiological adaptations and the altitude-induced inflammation and oxidative stress in elite endurance athletes, and whether the athletes adapted their diet during altitude training according to IOC’s recommendations. Also, the importance of pre-altitude iron stores and iron supplementation during altitude camps on the changes in Hbmass was investigated.
The results of the clinical trial demostrate that doubling the daily intake of antioxidant-rich snacks during a training camp at moderate altitude attenuated some of the altitude-induced inflammation without blunting training adaptations, measured as Hbmass, maximum oxygen uptake and performance. Daily consumption of smoothies, dried fruits, berries, nuts, and dark chocolate increased the blood’s antioxidant capacity but did not attenuate oxidative stress. The antioxidant-rich snacks, accounting for only 18% of the total daily energy intake, improved the micro- and macronutrient composition of the athletes’ diets. The experienced athletes met most of the IOC’s recommendations for altitude training yet a conscious effort was necessary to increase the intake of antioxidant-rich foods. Further, the thesis revealed that high-dose iron supplements were not necessary for the Hbmass increase in athletes with clinically normal iron status. Though, the altitude-induced fall in s-ferritin was avoided with iron supplements.
Additional information
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