title: Effects of medium-chain triglyceride ingestion on fuel metabolism and cycling performance.
abstract: On three occasions separated by 10 days, six endurance-trained cyclists rode for 2 h at 60% of peak O2 uptake and then performed a simulated 40-km time trial (T-trial). During the rides, the subjects ingested a total of 2 liters of a [U-14C]glucose-labeled beverage containing a random order of either 10% glucose [carbohydrate (CHO)], 4.3% medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs); or 10% glucose + 4.3% MCTs (CHO+MCT). Although replacing CHO with MCTs slowed the T-trials from 66.8 +/- 0.4 (SE) to 72.1 +/- 0.6 min (P < 0.001), adding MCTs to CHO improved the T-trials from 66.8 +/- 0.4 to 65.1 +/- 0.5 min (P < 0.05). Faster T-trials in the CHO+MCT trial than in the CHO trial were associated with increased final circulating concentrations of free fatty acids (0.58 +/- 0.09 vs. 0.36 +/- 0.06 mmol/l; P < 0.05) and ketones (1.51 +/- 0.25 vs. 0.51 +/- 0.07 mmol/l; P < 0.01) and decreased final circulating concentrations of glucose (5.2 +/- 0.2 vs. 6.3 +/- 0.3 mmol/l; P < 0.01) and lactate (1.9 +/- 0.4 vs. 3.7 +/- 0.5 mmol/l; P < 0.05). Adding MCTs to ingested CHO reduced total CHO oxidation rates from 14 +/- 1 to 10 +/- 1 mmol/min at 2 h and from 17 +/- 1 to 14 +/- 1 mmol/min in the T-trial (P < 0.01), without affecting the corresponding approximately 5 and approximately 7 mmol/min rates of [14C]glucose oxidation. These data suggest that MCT oxidation decreased the direct and/or indirect (via lactate) oxidation of muscle glycogen. A reduced reliance on CHO oxidation at a given O2 uptake is similar to an endurance-training effect, and that may explain the improved T-trial performances.
authors.affiliation: Liberty Life Chair of Exercise and Sport Science, University of Cape Town Medical School, Observatory, South Africa.
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Van Zyl
authors.forename: E V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Lambert
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hawley
authors.forename: T D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Noakes
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Dennis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects*; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D014280:Triglycerides; D005947:Glucose