Nutrition Interventions to Support the Immune System in Response to Stress
Condition: Mitigation of Immune Function Decrements in Response to Stress
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Physical and psychological stress on military personnel during training and operational
      missions can suppress immune function. Creating superficial skin wounds via suction blisters
      can be used to detect changes in immune function. The goals of this research are to: 1)
      identify changes in immune function (blood measures and healing time of skin wounds) in
      response to sleep restriction; and, 2) test the influence of a multi-nutrient beverage and
      healthy bacteria (i.e., probiotics) on immune function (blood measures and healing time of
      skin wounds) in response to sleep restriction.
    

Detailed description: 
      Physical and psychological stress on Warfighters during training and operational missions can
      suppress immune responsiveness. Skin wound healing models can be used to detect changes in
      immune function. The goals of this research are to: 1) quantify the impact of an operational
      stressor (i.e., sleep restriction) on suction blister immune response and skin barrier
      restoration; and, 2) test the influence of nutrition intervention(s) on immune response and
      skin barrier restoration consequent to an operational stressor. Research will be conducted in
      a laboratory environment using male and female Soldiers from the human research participant
      detachment (NSRDEC), NSRDEC and/or USARIEM. Recently, the investigators lab assessed the
      test-retest reliability of a suction blister model by creating eight suction blisters on
      participants' left and right forearms, and sampling blister fluid and skin barrier
      restoration (12-06H), which will serve as one of the control groups (Group 1, N = 15) for the
      study described herein. Participants in the study described herein (Groups 2-4, n = ~60) will
      be exposed to ~50 hours of sleep restriction , after which time eight suction blisters will
      be induced on one forearm and immune responsiveness and skin barrier restoration time
      recorded. Participants will receive no nutrition intervention (Group 2), an immune-enhancing
      beverage and additional protein (1.2 g protein per kg body weight versus 0.8 g protein per kg
      body weight) (Group 3) or probiotics (Group 4), during and after sleep restriction to
      determine if nutritional approaches attenuate the loss of immune responsiveness. The results
      of this study will provide insight into whether nutritional supplementation approaches confer
      immune recovery. The investigators hypothesize that the suction blister immune response
      (during the 24 hours following blister induction) and time to skin barrier restoration will
      degrade after an imposed stress which includes~50 hours of wakefulness and constrained
      living; and, a diet supplemented with either protein and a multi-nutrient nutritional
      supplement OR probiotics will attenuate the decrements in suction blister immune
      responsiveness (during the 24 hours following blister induction) and time to skin barrier
      restoration in response to ~50 hours of sustained wakefulness and constrained living.
    

Intervention name(s): Immune-enhancing nutritional beverage; Probiotics (BB-12); Placebo (for nutritional beverage and probiotic)
Intervention type(s): Dietary Supplement; Dietary Supplement; Dietary Supplement
Intervention description(s): Combination of arginine, glutamine, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin C and zinc.; Probiotics (Bifidobacterium Animalis Lactis, BB-12®, Chr Hansen A/S, Hoersholm, Denmark) will be administered as a strawberry-flavored, powdered candy (1 g). The candy will be packaged in a small foil pouch, and each pouch will contain approximately 1 billion colony forming units (CFU) of BB-12® in powder form.; Dietary protein at RDA of 0.8 grams•kg-1 body weight•day-1 and a placebo beverage during and after the period of sleep restriction.
Other intervention name(s): Bifidobacterium Animalis Lactis, BB-12®
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Participant)
Primary purpose: Supportive Care