Abstract

Background: Exercise increases the production of free radicals, while vitamin E acts as a
scavenger of free radicals, while vitamin E acts as a scavenger of free- radicals. Thus exogenous
vitamin E supplementation has been shown to be effective against exercise- induced oxidative
stress.The study aims to investigate the effect of vitamin E (400mg) supplementation on the
endogenous antioxidant systems of the body viz. superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione
peroxidase (GPX) and catalase (CAT) of hundred healthy sedentary females of 18-21 years age
group and comparable height and weight. Material & Methodology: Endurance capacity of
each subject was determined by exercising them on Magnetic Break Bicycle Ergometer at a fixed
workload of 600KgM/ min till exhaustion. SOD, GPX and CAT levels were analyzed at pre and
post exercise levels. The subjects were divided into two groups --- control group (n=50) and the
group receiving 400 mg of vitamin E (Evion 400) (VE) supplementation for 15 days. The same
experimental procedure was repeated after the supplementation tenure. Results :Results
indicates that exercise caused a significant decrease in the CAT level (P<0.05) and an increase in
SOD level (P<0.001) and GPX level (P< 0.05). However, these changes in the level of SOD, GPX
and CAT were minimized after exogenous vitamin E supplementation.Conclusion: The entire
result signifies that vitamin E is highly effective in combating exercise- induced oxidative stress
in sedentary females.