Evidence mapPaperPMID 41578624Full record

ArticleExperimental physiology2026

The effects of a (poly)phenol-rich food intervention on markers of exercise-induced inflammation and oxidative stress: A randomised controlled trial.

Abrar Al Hebshi, Josh Thorley, Ana Rodriguez-Mateos, Zicheng Zhang, Lewis J James, Tom Clifford

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In one paragraph

Article in Experimental physiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Abrar Al HebshiDepartment of Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Josh ThorleySchool of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.
Ana Rodriguez-MateosDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Life Course and Population Sciences, King's College London, London, UK.
Zicheng ZhangDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Life Course and Population Sciences, King's College London, London, UK.
Lewis J JamesSchool of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK.
Tom CliffordSchool of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0484-2953

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This study examined whether consuming a (poly)phenol-rich food before strenuous muscle-damaging exercise can modify post-exercise markers of inflammation and oxidative stress. Using a double-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled, between-subjects design, 26 recreationally active males (n = 15) and females (n = 11) consumed higher-(poly)phenol (H-POL) foods (dates, dark chocolate, pomegranate; 285.1 mg/day) or lower-(poly)phenol foods (L-POL) (cereal bar, milk chocolate, sports drink; 88.3 mg/day) for 3 days before, and then 30 min before, strenuous exercise (100 drop jumps, 50 squat jumps). A range of blood markers associated with inflammation (total and differential leukocytes, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-12, tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), granulocyte colony-stimulating factor), and oxidative stress (glutathione peroxidase (GPX), 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), and urinary 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG)) were quantified pre, immediately post, 1 and 2 h post-exercise. One hundred and nineteen plasma (poly)phenol metabolites were measured pre, immediately post and 1 h post-exercise. Total plasma (poly)phenol concentrations were greater in the H-POL vs. L-POL intervention, peaking 1 h post-exercise (H-POL: 239.5 ± 87.8 µM vs. L-POL 58.9 ± 33.8 µM; P < 0.001). There were interaction effects for IL-10 and TNF-α but no differences with post hoc tests. Urinary 8-OHdG excretion was higher in H-POL vs L-POL (condition effect; P < 0.001), whereas erythrocytes GPX activity was higher in the L-POL vs. H-POL (condition effect; P < 0.001). A (poly)phenol food intervention before exercise increased total plasma (poly)phenol concentrations but had limited and inconsistent effects on markers of inflammation and oxidative stress in the 2 h after strenuous exercise.

Indexed as

exercise recoverynutraceuticalsoxidative stressphytochemicals

Identifiers

PMID41578624
PMCPMC13394798

What Socratic holds

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.