In a new study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found that a multi-strain probiotic supplement was able to significantly reduce GI symptoms compared to a control placebo group. Importantly, cycling performance was not affected by supplementation with these four strains, which included Lactobacillus helveticus, Bifidobacterium animalis, Enterococcus faecium, and Bacillus subtilis.
 
Elite cycling, like many other high-intensity sports in which athletes expend mammoth amounts of calories, comes with well-known digestive issues, in part due to the large meals competitors must eat to account for the thousands of calories they may burn during an event or training. It’s not uncommon for competitors to complain about GI problems, such as nausea, vomiting, bloating, heartburn, belching, and lower digestive issues. The authors of the present study report that between 46% and 54% of cyclists report upper and lower GI symptoms during training, and that this number becomes even more prevalent during competition.
 
27 cyclists were recruited for this study, all of whom were ranked elite or category 1 level competitors, and were randomly assigned into a probiotic supplemented group (n=11) or a placebo group (n=16). Prior to testing, the participants were required to self-report their GI symptoms, and underwent physical and medical examination, as well as anthropometric measurements. Blood tests for inflammation, VO2 max tests, and time-to-fatigue tests were all conducted.
 
The results of the study indicated that probiotic supplementation significantly reduced incidence of nausea, belching, and vomiting at rest, and significantly decreased incidence of GI symptoms during training.
 
Additionally, self-reported results indicated that the experimental probiotic group had significantly lower perceived exertion than the placebo group.
 
The authors of the study concluded that “future research should be carried out using a higher dosage of multi-strain probiotic products. Furthermore, performing similar studies during competition seasons may lead to tighter control over training phases and may result in meaningful and applicable results.”