Driuchina Anastasiia, Isola Ville, Hulmi Juha J, Salmi Vera M, Hintikka Jukka, Ahtiainen Juha P, Pekkala Satu
University of Jyväskylä, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, Jyväskylä, Finland.
Turku University Hospital, Department of Clinical Microbiology, Turku, Finland.
J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2025 Dec;22(1):2474561. doi: 10.1080/15502783.2025.2474561. Epub 2025 Mar 3.
Competitive sports and sports nutrition, popular among amateur athletes aiming for a lean physique, have limited research on gut microbiota.
We conducted a 46-week study to analyze the consequences of fat loss and diet restrictions in 23 fitness athletes who prepared for a physique competition. Body composition, dietary intakes, serum cytokines and chemokines, and fecal samples were analyzed.
Fat loss through caloric restriction and aerobic exercise led to an increased phylogenetic diversity of gut microbiota and changes in the composition of gut microbiota, with , Lachnospiraceae, , and showing altered abundances. Fat loss also changed the predicted microbial functions responsible for the metabolism of carbohydrates and amino acids. Consumption of energy, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals, and various fatty acids decreased during the preparation for the competition, which was partly associated with changes in gut microbiota. Several cytokine levels decreased (IL1a, IL1b, IL10, and TFNα), and certain chemokine levels increased (GROa and RANTES). During the 23-week regain period after the competition, gut microbiota showed signs of recovery, with increased diversity compared to pre- and post-competition measurements. Most taxonomic changes returned to their baseline levels after the regain period.
The study highlights the dynamic nature of gut microbiota and its response to fat loss and regain in non-obese fitness/physique competitors and provides novel insights into how competitive sports and sports nutrition can influence the gut ecosystem.
竞技运动和运动营养在追求瘦体型的业余运动员中很受欢迎，但对肠道微生物群的研究有限。
我们进行了一项为期46周的研究，分析了23名准备参加体型比赛的健身运动员减脂和饮食限制的后果。对身体成分、饮食摄入量、血清细胞因子和趋化因子以及粪便样本进行了分析。
通过热量限制和有氧运动减脂导致肠道微生物群的系统发育多样性增加以及肠道微生物群组成的变化，其中毛螺菌科、 、 和 的丰度发生了改变。减脂还改变了负责碳水化合物和氨基酸代谢的预测微生物功能。在比赛准备期间，能量、碳水化合物、纤维、维生素和矿物质以及各种脂肪酸的消耗量减少，这与肠道微生物群的变化部分相关。几种细胞因子水平下降（IL1a、IL1b、IL10和TFNα），某些趋化因子水平升高（GROa和RANTES）。在比赛后的23周恢复期，肠道微生物群显示出恢复的迹象，与比赛前和比赛后的测量相比，多样性增加。大多数分类学变化在恢复期后恢复到基线水平。
该研究突出了肠道微生物群的动态性质及其对非肥胖健身/体型竞争者减脂和恢复的反应，并为竞技运动和运动营养如何影响肠道生态系统提供了新的见解。
