Currant discovery

A recent study lead by Roger Hurst of the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research (NZIPFR), has discovered that blackcurrant extract improves athletic performance. The findings, which were published in the American Journal of Physiology, show that the extract minimises muscle damage by modulating oxidative stress, regulates inflammation and potentially enhances the body’s natural defence against disease. The study looked at untrained individuals undergoing moderate exercise. “In our research, we chose a group of 10 healthy everyday people with a wide age range who exercised regularly and measured biochemical indicators to assess the effect of taking the blackcurrant extract capsules before and after exercise,” Hurst said. “We found changes in the levels of bio-markers that indicate antioxidant activity, inflammation modulating ability and support for the natural immune responsiveness to potential pathogens.”