Effect of 12 Weeks of Regular Exercise with Vitamin C Supplementation on the Salivary IgA of Male High School Students

Introduction: Immunoglobulins are humoral elements, which indicate the function of the immune system. Studies have shown that exercise and vitamin C supplementation could increase immunoglobulin levels. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of 12 weeks of regular exercise with vitamin C supplementation on the salivary IgA of male high school students. Methods: This clinical trial was conducted on 40 male high school students who were randomly assigned to four groups of 10, including exercise with vitamin C supplementation, exercise, vitamin C supplementation, and control group. Groups one and two performed the selected exercises for three sessions, and groups one and three consumed three vitamin C tablets (250 mg) per week. Saliva samples were collected 24 hours before the first training session (pretest) and 48 hours after the last training session (posttest). Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 22 using ttest, one-way ANOVA, and Tukey’s posthoc test at the significance level of P≤0.05. Results: Salivary IgA was significantly affected by 12 weeks of regular exercise and vitamin C supplementation. The differences between the groups indicated that the IgA levels in the exercise with vitamin C group (P=0.001) and exercise group (P=0.001) were significantly higher compared to the control group. However, no significant difference was observed between the control and vitamin C groups in this regard (P=0.49). Conclusion: According to the results, regular exercise and vitamin C supplementation could increase the salivary IgA levels of the male high school students.