Dear Health Conscious Reader,
World-class cyclist Lance Armstrong uses a powerful nutrient to safely and naturally boost his athletic performance.
It’s so reliable; Olympians and serious exercisers are flocking to it for help during strenuous workouts.1
I’m talking about quercetin, a powerful antioxidant/anti-inflammatory bioflavonoid that also boosts the immune system and increases mitochondria (the powerhouse of the cell) in your muscles and brain.
Abundant in apples, berries, grapes, tomatoes, onions, and black tea, it’s only recently that researchers discovered its power to radically boost energy. For instance, a double-blind clinical study from Pepperdine University in California, with the Amgen cyclist team, showed quercetin provided a 3.1% increase in the athletes’ timed trial performance.2
But what if you’re not an elite athlete?
What if you’d just like to have plenty of energy to get through holiday shopping, parties, and managing the in-laws? Well, here’s good news for you, too. Quercetin isn’t just for athletes and soldiers who are tested to the extreme, but also for average adults who battle fatigue and stress daily.
A study by Arnold School of Health at the University of South Carolina showed quercetin can dramatically increase energy and endurance in active, healthy adults—even if you’re not in an exercise training program.3 So now, on those days when you struggle to put one foot in front of the other, quercetin can help put the bounce back in your step.
And that’s just for starters.
This powerful antioxidant reduces susceptibility to flu.4 It protects brain cells against oxidative stress, a tissue-damaging process associated with Alzheimer’s, and other neurodegenerative disorders.5 And its anti-inflammatory action may lead to a new treatment for COPD.6
With all these benefits tied to quercetin, it’s no wonder why your grandma told you, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away!” But just how much quercetin will benefit you?
For general health purposes, I recommend 15 to 40 mg per day, and you can get it simply by eating a few servings a day of the fruits and vegetables that are rich in quercetin, listed here:
- Apples
- Broccoli
- Capers
- Cherries
- Citrus Fruit
- Cranberries
- Leafy Green Vegetables
- Raspberries
- Red Grapes
- Red Onions
- Tomatoes
However, at today’s hectic pace, you may not be able to maintain adequate amounts from food alone. In this case, you can get extra quercetin from dietary supplements. There are many all-in-one supplements that contain vitamins, minerals, quercetin, and other bioflavonoids and nutrients available at your local health-food store.
For peak performance, I suggest 500 mg twice a day. For therapeutic purposes (allergy management, anti-inflammatory treatment, disease treatment), you’ll need to take higher dosages, and only under professional supervision.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
- Endreszi, Lara, “Magic Quercetin—Radical New Energy Booster?”, www.healthnews.com
- MacRae Holden, Mefford Karl, Sports Performance Clinical Trial, “Dietary Antioxidant Supplementation Combined with Quercetin Improves Cycling Time Trial Performance”, Pepperdine University, International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 2006, 16, 405-4
- “Arnold School Studies Benefits of Quercetin”, University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health, http://www.sc.edu/news/newsarticle.php?nid=323
- Davis, J Mark, Murphy, E.A., McClellan, J.L., Carmichael, M.D., University of South Carolina; Gangemi, J.D., Clemson University, “Quercetin reduces susceptibility to influenza infection following stressful exercise,” American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 06/14/2008
- Lee, C.Y, Ph.D., Heo, H.J., “Protective Effects of Quercetin and Vitamin C against Oxidative Stress-Induced Neurodegeneration”, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 52 (25), pp 7514–7517
- Ongoing study, 2008-2012, “Quercetin on Innate Immune Responses in COPD”, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor