Capsule of promise in blackcurrants

Blackcurrants may help minimise muscle damage and help boost the immune system if taken after exercise, researchers have found.

Blackcurrants could help athletes to recover from the impact of exercise, according to new research.

A preliminary study by the New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research has found signs that an extract derived from locally grown blackcurrants, taken in capsule form before and after exercise, could minimise muscle damage and inflammation and boost the immune system.

Researchers led by Roger Hurst have yet to determine exactly which blackcurrant compounds are responsible for the effects, but are looking closely at the role of flavanoids within the fruit.

Flavanoids are antioxidants, including anthocyanins, the compounds that give blackcurrants their black-red colour.

New Zealand-grown blackcurrants are known to contain high levels of anthocyanins, which may be linked to the cultivars grown here, or to environmental conditions.

Dr Hurst said that while exercise was universally agreed to be healthy, extreme exercise - such as intense pre-event training - could have some drawbacks, including lowering the body's immune defences and increasing the risk of muscle damage.

His study looked at untrained individuals undergoing moderate exercise.

It found that those who took the blackcurrant extract had lower markers linked to muscle damage and inflammation and an increased immune response.

The positive link between blackcurrants and exercise had been previously highlighted in Japanese studies linked to sustained computer use and keyboard typing.

The Japanese research flagged the potential of blackcurrants to reduce lactic acid build-up in muscles.

Plant & Food's business manager for food innovations, Karl Crawford, said the institute knew it was "on the right track in our belief that fruit extracts, combined with exercise, can have a beneficial effect on human health".

He said a paper on the study, published in the American Journal of Physiology, had generated strong interest from the industry and highlighted new areas for further research.

- NZPA