Antioxidants and Exercise - Like Oil and Water?

Eating well generally includes getting a variety of vitamins and antioxidants. So that's why a recent study on the effects of mixing exercise and antioxidants is so very frustrating at first glance.

Exercise helps boost your metabolism and increase insulin sensitivity, but incorporating antioxidant supplements such as vitamin C and E into your diet might negate these benefits, researchers found.

When you exercise, your muscle cells metabolize glucose, causing tissue-damaging oxygen molecules to be released -- antioxidants attack those molecules, which is normally a good thing. However, those same molecules have been shown to increase the body's sensitivity to insulin, which can help prevent Type 2 diabetes.

Don't think this means you get a pass on your daily servings of fruits and veggies, though -- researchers in this study agree that getting antioxidants through food is a good thing, and that it's really when you start taking large amounts of supplements that antioxidants might curb some of the benefits of exercise if you're at risk for diabetes.

Keep in mind, of course, that this is only one study. It is part of a growing body of evidence that have not shown supplements to be beneficial, and some may even be harmful. So the message isn't really frustrating at all, fruits and vegetables are still the best way to go.