Abstract
This study compares the effects of the uptake or inhalation of 50uL Mentha piperita (MP) essential oil for 10 days on heart rate variability (HRV) and cardiopulmonary regulation during various exercise intensities. Forty-eight healthy male subjects were randomly assigned to MP uptake (MPU; n=16), MP inhalation (MPI; n=16), and control group (C; n=16). All participants were measured resting HRV, respiratory, cardiovascular, and metabolic parameters during aerobic, anaero- bic, and graded exercise tests (GXT) before and after treatment. There were significant increases in the low-frequency area (LFa; 1.8±0.1 vs 2.2±0.2 ms²), the ratio of low frequency to respiration frequency area (LFa/RFa; 0.9±0.1 vs 1.3±0.1) at resting and carbon dioxide production (VCO 2 ; 41.2±4.0 vs 49.2±6.8 mL/min -1 /kg -1 ), ventilation per minute (V E ; 80.2±4.3 vs 97.5±5.5 L/min -1 ), and respiratory rate (RR; 38.2±1.9 to 44.3±2.1 breath/min -1 ) in an anaerobic test following MPU inter- vention. In GXT, maximal carbon dioxide production (VCO 2max; 51.9±3.5 to 59.1±6.4 mL/min -1 /kg -1 ), maximal ventilation per minute (V Emax ; 126.4±6.5 to 138.4±5.4 L/min -1 ) and maximal respiratory rate (RR max ; 52.7±3.6 to 60.1±2.3 breath/min -1 ) significantly increased in MPU. The correlations of ΔLFa with ΔVCO 2max , ΔV Emax , and ΔRR max in the MPU group were signifi- cant. Continuous uptake or inhalation of 50uL MP oil for 10 days does not improve aerobic capacity and maximal exercise performance, but 10 days’ uptake of MP essential oil increased sympathetic activity at rest and may relate to respiratory regulation under high-intensity exercise.
Highlights
Many scientific researchers are still attempting to increase athletic performance with supplemented natural plant products
To the authors’ best knowledge, this is the first study to design randomized controlled trial (RCT) experiments with a relatively large sample size to investigate the effects of Mentha piperita (MP) essential oil uptake or inhalation for 10 consecutive days on heart rate variability (HRV) on resting and respiratory, cardiovascular, and metabolic regulation during various exercise intensities
The main findings of this study are 1) both the uptake and the inhalation of 50uL of MP essential oil for 10 consecutive days does not increase aerobic capacity and maximal exercise performance; 2) the 10 days’ uptake of MP essential oil enhances the sympathetic activity and sympathovagal balance at rest, but the inhalation of MP essential oil does not have this effect; 3) the 10 days’ uptake of MP essential oil increases respiratory rate (RR), ventilation per minute (VE), and VCO2 at higher intensity exercise, which may relate to sympathetic activation
Summary
Many scientific researchers are still attempting to increase athletic performance with supplemented natural plant products. Whether through direct nasal inhalation or mixing with the aqueous solution for oral uptake, is MP essential oil has effective in enhancing athletic performance? The present study designs a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to validate the effects of 50 uL MP essential oil uptake or inhalation on autonomic, respiratory, cardiovascular, and metabolic systems and to identify possible mechanisms by which MP essential oil affects athletic performance. The purposes of this study are as follows: first, confirm the effects of 50uL intake or inhalation of MP essential oil on athletic performance for 10 consecutive days, including in aerobic, anaerobic, and maximum exercise performance. Confirm whether 50uL intake or inhalation of MP essential oil for 10 days will affect the autonomic nervous system and change respiratory, cardiovascular, and metabolic regulation during exercise
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