Cellfood can be used to enhance the effectiveness of an exercise programme by supporting oxygen delivery. It is used by athletes and sports men and women for improved performance.
The results of the recent study on the impact of Cellfood on fitness and performance, led by Heinrich Nolte at the Institute for Sport Research at the University of Pretoria, illustrates the effectiveness of incorporating Cellfood into your training programme.
The study concluded that Cellfood:
Overall, the study showed that endurance athletes taking Cellfood can significantly and safely improve their performance even if they are already at the limits of their training and fitness levels. Cellfood is ideal for professional and amateur sportsmen and women across a wide range of sports from football, rugby, cricket and tennis to swimming, long distance running, cycling, rowing and cross country skiing.
Athletes of various ages and levels of participation are increasingly exploring the use of ergogenic aids to help them improve their performance.
An ergogenic aid is a nutritional, physical, mechanical, psychological or pharmacological aid to improve physical work capacity or athletic performance (McCardle, Katch and Katch, 1991). It is anything that enhances strength, speed, response time or endurance. Ergogenic aids can also hasten recovery after exercise.
Considerable scientific literature exists on the topic of ergogenic aids and athletic performance. Frequently ergogenic aids are thought of only as pharmacological agents that may be consumed to give the athlete an advantage. But pharmacological agents constitute only one of several classes of ergogenic aids. Others include nutritional (carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals, water and electrolytes), physiological (oxygen, blood boosting, conditioning and recovery procedures), psychological (hypnosis, suggestion and rehearsal) and mechanical (improved body mechanics, clothing, equipment and skill training) components.
Ergogenic aids affect different people differently, as might be expected. For some, studies show a positive influence on work performance and for others, no effect whatsoever. Certain ergogenic aids may influence a person's endurance performance but may have little or no effect on activities requiring short bursts of strength and power (Fox and Bowers, 1993; Williams, 1983).
Forty-five marathon runners between the ages of 20-51 volunteered to take part in the Cellfood study. All were members of marathon clubs in and around Pretoria. They were not allowed strenuous training the day before each test, and had to:
The primary aim of the study was to determine the efficacy of Cellfood as an ergogenic aid for endurance athletes. Subjects were randomly assigned to a group taking Cellfood, and a group taking a placebo.
| Group | Cycle 1 | Cycle 2 | Cycle 3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product | Dosage | Product | Dosage | Product | Dosage | |
| A | Cellfood | 28ml | Cellfood | 39.2ml | Cellfood | 44.8ml |
| B | Placebo | 28ml | Placebo | 39.2ml | Placebo | 44.8ml |
Each of these groups was given Cellfood and the placebo for four weeks. There was then a two-week wash out period where they took no supplementation. This four-week, two-week pattern was repeated two more times at increasing dosages.
The study principally looked at:
Each of these variables has a considerable impact on athletic performance.
Success in endurance sports is based on the delivery of adequate oxygen to the working muscles. This delivery system is carried out by the blood. Therefore red blood cells, haemoglobin and iron (ferretin) are vitally important factors in the health of exercising (as well as non-exercising) individuals:
As mentioned above, oxygen binds to haemoglobin, thus substantially increasing the blood's oxygen carrying capacity. The higher the saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen, the more oxygen is available to use as energy for the working muscles. Increased oxygen has various benefits for athletes, including lower lactate levels, better oxygen consumption and better recovery.
Lactic acid is related to muscular fatigue. It also lowers pH levels in the body which can lead to other negative effects. It is highly beneficial for athletes if lactic acid levels remain low for as long as possible during exercise as it enables the endurance athlete to perform better for longer. Lower lactic acid levels also aid faster recovery after exercise. The usual explanation for an increase in lactic acid is a lack of adequate oxygen in the tissues during heavy exercise.
Heart rates indicate the level of effort used during exercise. Basically, lower heart rates during exercise are beneficial because they indicate a decrease in effort, an increase in fitness and increased economy of movement.
This indicates the maximum amount of oxygen that the body can take in, use and transport through the body to the working muscles. It is an accurate predictor of a person's potential to perform well at endurance events. Although not the only predictor, this measure is significant in that a high maximal oxygen consumption requires a high level of heart-lung and neuromuscular functions. An increase in oxygen consumption indicates a synergistic increase in several of the other factors mentioned in the study.
Haematology values. Since success in endurance sports is based on the delivery of adequate oxygen to the working muscles, the number of red blood cells, the level of haemoglobin and the level of iron in the blood are all vital factors for athletes (as well as normal people). They affect the amount of oxygen in the blood, and how it is transported to the tissues and working muscles.
A lot of athletes try to increase these values. However, many of the techniques, like blood doping and EPO, are illegal and dangerous. At the same time, too high haematology levels are unnatural and dangerous. The effect of Cellfood on haematology values seems therefore doubly beneficial: it seems to optimise these levels for better performance while keeping them within safe limits.
Haemoglobin saturation. The higher the saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen, the more oxygen is available to use as energy for the working muscles. However, haemoglobin saturation levels drop quickly as exercise intensity increases, and this reduces the amount of available oxygen and energy. In the study, the saturation levels of the athletes who took Cellfood decreased less quickly - in fact, athletes had 9.2% more oxygen available to possibly bind with the haemoglobin. Given the normal decreases in haemoglobin saturation levels, the slower rate of fall for those taking Cellfood was dramatic.
Lactic acid. Athletes are constantly looking for ways to lower lactic acid levels and so reduce muscle fatigue and the negative effects of lower pH values. Cellfood lowered lactic acid levels by as much as 25%. At this level, athletes can substantially increase their anaerobic threshold, and function at a higher intensity and heart rate for a longer period of time. Recovery after long exhausting sessions is also quicker since the build up of lactic acid is reduced.
Heart rates. When athletes can maintain the same effort at a lower heart rate, one can assume it is due to an improved economy of movement or increase in fitness or both. The athletes in the study taking Cellfood showed lower heart rates during the whole test, some as much as 14.6% lower. In other words, the heart in the athletes taking Cellfood could work less to provide to the same oxygen demand from the tissues and working muscles. This improved economy of breathing is likely to translate into increased performance.
Oxygen consumption (V02 max). All endurance athletes want to increase their V02max. Unfortunately this factor is mainly controlled by genetic make-up. One could probably improve V02max by up to 10% at most providing that the person is not currently well conditioned. However, athletes in the study were all already fit members of road running clubs who had been running for a long time. The fact that these athletes still managed to show increases of up to 5% in their V02max is therefore highly significant.
Other observations. Although the study did not officially measure how quickly the athletes recovered after exercise, it became clear that those on Cellfood recovered more quickly than those on the placebo. This was likely due not only to the increased levels of oxygen and lower lactate levels recorded by the study, but also to the trace elements and other nutrients present in Cellfood.
Dosage. Cellfood and the placebo were taken in increasing amounts during the study, from 28ml (25 drops) to 39.2ml (35 drops) and 44.8ml (40 drops). For most of the variables measured, the most significant changes occurred during cycle 3 at the higher dosage of Cellfood. This indicates (a) that higher dosages are more beneficial and (b) that, despite the two week washout-out period between cycles, Cellfood has a bigger impact over time.
Safety. The study found no evidence of any harmful effects of taking Cellfood. Indeed, Cellfood was found to be more efficacious at higher rather than lower doses. Cellfood appears completely safe even at higher doses than those used in the study. These results are backed up by LD50 tests, the standard tests for nutrition (food or drug) safety studies in Europe and America. Tests on Cellfood easily surpassed the permitted levels.
The study clearly showed that Cellfood:
As the author of the study, Heinrich Nolte, concludes:
"Given that performance in endurance sports, such as soccer, rugby and long distance running, is principally based on the delivery of oxygen to the working muscles, the results we obtained with Cellfood should be of interest to a number of sportsmen and women.
"It is clear that Cellfood increases not only the levels of oxygen, but also the delivery of oxygen to the muscles, and the consumption of oxygen by the body overall. This should translate into better performance for the endurance athlete.
"The other results, with lower lactate levels and increased economy of breathing, should also improve performance.
"Furthermore, if the indications that Cellfood speeds recovery time after exercise are borne out by further research, then this could have important implications for training programmes and the ability to compete. Often teams, or individual athletes, have to play important matches or compete in events, when they have not fully recovered from previous encounters.
