BIOLOGICAL TRACE ELEMENT RESEARCH, cilt.121, sa.3, ss.215-220, 2008 (SCI-Expanded)
Adrenocorticotropic Hormone and Cortisol Levels
in Athletes and Sedentary Subjects at Rest
and Exhaustion: Effects of Magnesium Supplementation
Vedat Cinar • Rasim Mogulkoc • Abdulkerim Kasim Baltaci • Yahya Polat
Abstract
The effects of a 1-month exercise program and magnesium supplementation on
the adrenocorticotropic hormone and Cortisol levels were studied in young tae-kwon-do and
sedentary subjects both at rest and exhaustion. The hormone levels were compared before
and after supplementation with 10 mg of magnesium (as magnesium sulfate) per kilogram
ofbody weight. Both exercise and magnesium supplements caused significant increases of
the adrenocorticotropic hormone (p<0.05). The Cortisol levels were increased in training
subjects receiving supplements (p<0.05) but not so in subjects that either trained or
received magnesium supplements in an independent manner. The Cortisol levels measured
in resting individuals were higher in the supplemented and non-supplemented athletes than
those in sedentary subjects (p<0.05). The results of this study show that exercise and/or
magnesium supplementation causes a rise of the adrenocorticotropic hormone, whereas
Cortisol is increased only as a result of combined exhaustion and magnesium supplements.
Keywords
Tae-kwon-do • Magnesium supplementation • Rest • Exhaustion • ACTH • Cortisol