Dietary Supplementation with a Superoxide Dismutase-Melon Concentrate Reduces Stress, Physical and Mental Fatigue in Healthy People: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND We aimed to investigate effects of superoxide dismutase (SOD)-melon concentrate supplementation on psychological stress, physical and mental fatigue in healthy people. METHODS A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed on 61 people divided in two groups: active supplement (n = 32) and placebo (n = 29) for 12 weeks. Volunteers were given one small hard capsule per day. One capsule contained 10 mg of SOD-melon concentrate (140 U of SOD) and starch for the active supplement and starch only for the placebo. Stress and fatigue were evaluated using four psychometric scales: PSS-14; SF-36; Stroop tests and Prevost scale. RESULTS The supplementation with SOD-melon concentrate significantly decreased perceived stress, compared to placebo. Moreover, quality of life was improved and physical and mental fatigue were reduced with SOD-melon concentrate supplementation. CONCLUSION SOD-melon concentrate supplementation appears to be an effective and natural way to reduce stress and fatigue. TRIAL REGISTRATION trial approved by the ethical committee of Poitiers (France), and the ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier is NCT01767922.