A current perspective on nutrition and exercise.

Nutrition has always been a subject of great interest to athletes. In recent years use of exercise has, however, expanded from competitive sports to prevention/management of chronic diseases and maintenance of optimal health. Exercise is recommended in the prevention/management of noninsulin-dependent diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, osteoporosis, obesity, mental health, colon cancer, stroke and back injury. Similarly, there is evidence that certain nutrients (e.g., vitamins C and E, beta-carotene and calcium) may reduce the risk of certain cancers, coronary heart disease, osteoporosis, hypertension and cataract. Thus, there seems to be concordance between the health benefits of exercise and certain nutrients. However, several human and animal studies suggest that strenuous exercise may promote free radical production, leading to lipid peroxidation and tissue damage. On the other hand, there is evidence that vitamins C and E and beta-carotene may protect against such damage. Thus, concordance between the health benefits of exercise and nutrition and a compensatory role of antioxidant nutrients against the potentially harmful effects of exercise suggests that nutrition and exercise should form important components of any regimen for prevention of chronic diseases and/or promotion of optimal health.