Season 2 Episode #41
Dr. Bubbs interviews expert physiologist Dr. David Pyne PhD to talk exercise immunology and keeping athletes cold and flu free. In this episode, Dr. Pyne reviews the fundamentals of immunology and how the immune system is regulated by exercise and nutrition. He’ll discuss how training volume, intensity and load impact immunity, and more importantly, why keeping athletes cold and flu free is paramount for athletic success. Dr. Pyne also discusses the key immunity biomarkers and how effective they may (or may not) be at flagging at-risk athletes. Finally, he dives into the topic of immune-nutrition and how the food you eat, and supplements like probiotics, can impact athlete immunity and therefore ability to train and compete.
Summary of Episode
2:40 – Immunology 101 – Review of the fundamentals
8:00 – How exercise impacts immune function
9:45 – How to manipulate exercise to support immunity
13:00 – Immunity biomarkers and assessment
16:00 – Importance of lifestyle factors in supporting immunity
18:30 – Impacts of probiotics on immunity
21:45 – Can probiotics reduce severity and/or duration of infection?
26:00 – Impact of carbohydrate on athlete immunity
28:00 – Impact of omega-3 on inflammation and immunity
31:30 – Role of supplements in immunity – research & practice
33:00 – Extreme temperatures and impact on immunity
36:00 – Recovery strategies and immunity
38:00 – Dr. Pyne’s reflections on 30 years of work in exercise and immunology
About Dr. David Pyne PhD
Dr. David Pyne PhD is a sports physiologist with 30 years practical and research experience across a range of individual and team sports such as, basketball, rugby union, rugby league, Australian Football, cricket and swimming at the Australian Institute of Sport and national levels. David has attended four Olympic Games and numerous international competitions with the Australian Swimming Team. Between 2013 and 2017, David served as the Discipline Lead – Physiology for Swimming Australia.
Dr. Pyne's research work in the areas of exercise and the immune system, environmental physiology, the applied physiology of swimming, and fitness and conditioning for team sports is recognised internationally. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed papers in exercise and sports science journals and is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine.
Links to Research Papers
Probiotics supplementation for athletes – Clinical and physiological effects
Exercise effects on mucosal immunity
Position statement part two: maintaining immune health. Exercise Immunology Review