Issue 20 june 2021 Dossier thématique Gut microbiota and physical exercise

Eat, move!

What if this famous message from the Protocole National de Diagnostic et de Soin [National Diagnostic and Care Protocol] (PNDS) was also (and primarily!) addressed to our gut microbiota? Although food is the main factor that guides the composition of our intestinal ecosystem, it appears physical activity also has a
significant influence.

Exercise is therefore a new field of exploration for our gut microbiota. Written with the help of Sport Nutrition PhD student Matthieu Clauss, the report teaches us everything (or almost everything) about the bidirectional relationships between the gut microbiota and physical exercise. The health benefits of an appropriate physical activity can be partly mediated by changes in the gut microbiota. But let us make no mistake… It is all a question of balance, and vigorous and prolonged sports can, on the contrary, lead to disruption of the gut microbiota of athletes, causing adverse digestive effects. Thanks to the interview with professional cycling team doctor Dr Maillot, we learn that gut microbiota modulation is gaining increasing interest with high-level athletes to limit these adverse effects, or even improve their performance.
The 2024 Olympic Games may therefore be an opportunity to test these gut microbiota modulation effects on high-level athletes on a broader scale, with results that may benefit amateur athletes, perhaps even you…

So, will it take ingesting Nadal’s stools to win Roland Garros ?

Alexis Mosca, Philippe Gérard
Editors in Chief of this issue