Objective:It is very important that oxidative stress is estimated for us to understand a player's condition in the field of sports. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether electroacupuncture has an effect on exercise-induced oxidative stress.
Methods:Ten healthy male volunteers participated in both the electroacupuncture (EA) group and the control group in a crossover design. EA at a frequency of 2 Hz and optimum intensity was performed in the subjects for 10 minutes in both the medial vastus muscles. During ergometer exercise by ramp load, respiratory metabolism including the RC point was recorded as the indication of energy metabolism. Blood was collected from the fingertips of the subjects, and then their levels of oxidative stress (d-ROMs test) and antioxidative (BAP test) were determined by using a Free Radical Analytical System (FRAS4, Wismell Instruments). Six measurements were taken;at rest, immediately after EA and following exercise, and at 20, 40, and 60 minutes following exercise.
Results:The RC point was significantly prolonged in the EA group compared with the control group. The level of oxidative stress (d-ROMs test) in the control group increased significantly at 20 minutes following exercise compared with rest (before exercise) and this increase was sustained until 60 minutes after exercise. In contrast, it did not significantly change in the EA group. Whereas the antioxidative level (BAP test) in the EA group significantly increased immediately following exercise compared with rest (before exercise), it did not increase in the control group.
Conclusion:These results suggest that electroacupuncture might enhance the antioxidative level (BAP test) and inhibit the level of oxidative stress (d-ROMs test) by effecting a change in respiratory metabolism. We propose that electroacupuncture might be useful for sports conditioning.

[Objective]Daily repetitive exercise is known to be necessary for players in sports. In this study, to further explore the potential functions of acupuncture, we studied whether electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation has efficacy for repetitive exercise-induced oxidative stress.
[Methods]Six healthy male volunteers participated in both the non-treatment control group and the EA group in a crossover design. EA stimulation was applied to both the medial vastus muscles at 2 Hz and optimum intensity for each subject during ten min just before each exercise period. The subject performed ergometer exercise for 20 min with 75%of maximal oxygen uptake each day. This exercise period was performed once a day for three consecutive days. Blood lactate level (BLL) and plasma lipid peroxide (LP) concentration were measured as the markers for metabolism and oxidative stress, respectively. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the individual level of fatigue due to exercise.
[Results]During and just after the exercise period, each value of BLL in the EA group was lower than the same points in the control group. Whereas LP concentrations before the exercise period on the first day in the control group was higher than the values in the same points on the second and third days. LP concentrations before the exercise period in the EA group were almost the same levels for three days. Furthermore, after the exercise period for the three consecutive days, LP concentrations and VAS in the EA group were lower than each value of the same points in the control group, and especially, the alteration of VAS showed a significant difference.
[Conclusion]The increased tendency of LP concentrations before the exercise period for three days in the control group indicated that repetitive exercise induced the accumulation of excess lipid peroxide. It might be suggested that EA stimulation suppressed subjective fatigue by an enhanced energy metabolic rate and decreased production of lipid peroxide. Hence the evidence strongly supported that EA stimulation might be useful for sports conditioning.