Simultaneous effect of four weeks of Nigella sativa oil supplementation and aerobic exercise on serum levels of malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity in inactive young women

Exercise interventions and consumption of some supplements can lead to changes in the antioxidant system and oxidative stress of skeletal muscles. Based on this, the present study investigated the effect of four weeks of Nigella sativa oil supplementation and aerobic exercise on the serum levels of malondialdehyde and the total antioxidant capacity of inactive young women. For this purpose, 40 inactive young women with an average age of 22.23 ± 4.51 years and BMI of 25.46 ± 4.21 participated in the research. Prior to the treatment, they filled out a written consent form. Then, the subjects were randomly divided into four groups: control (N=9), exercise + placebo (N=10), supplement (N=10), and exercise + supplement (N=11). The aerobic exercise groups performed four weeks of aerobic exercise with an intensity of 50% to 80% of the maximum heart rate, three sessions a week. Also, the Nigella sativa oil supplement groups received 1000 mg of its capsule per day after lunch. Blood samples were collected to measure the serum level of malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity in two stages before and after 24 hours of the last training session in fasting conditions from antecubital vein. Statistical analysis was performed by paired t-tests and the analysis of covariance at a significance level of P<0.05. Results showed that there is a significant decrease in total antioxidant capacity values between the aerobic group with the two supplement groups (P=0.03) and supplement + exercise (P=0.03). Also, a significant decrease was shown after the test as was compared to the pre-test in the within-group values of malondialdehyde serum concentration in the supplement group (P=0.03). According to the results, we conclude that the aerobic exercises and Nigella sativa supplementation leads to a decrease in the total antioxidant capacity and it has no effect on the oxidative index.