Abstract:
Iron is vital for a broad range of metabolic and physiological processes in the human body.
This study was aimed to investigate the effect of iron supplementation with aerobic exercise on
Hemoglobin, RBC, Hematocrit, Platelet and physiological parameters in both pre and post
workout supplementation groups of Mekelle University female Sport Science students. A
laboratory test was conducted at Mekelle University Ayder Comprehensive Specialized
Referral Hospital to find out the effect of pre versus post workout iron supplementations on
Hemoglobin, RBC, Hematocrit and Platelets and physiological parameters. Twenty (10 in
each group) students were assigned using simple random sampling technique into pre and
post workout supplementation groups. Three hundred mg of ferrous sulfate was used for both
pre and post workout supplements groups. Blood samples were collected before and after
supplementations to test the hematological and physiological parameters. Trainings were
made for 3 months (3days/week, at 50-75% of MHR for 50-65min). The result showed that
Hemoglobin significantly increased by 0.21 g/dl (p<0.05), RBC increased by 0.069×106 µl
(p<0.05), Hematocrit by 0.045% (p<0.05), Platelet by 4.7×103
(p<0.05), SBP decreased by
2.2mmHg (p<0.05), DBP decreased by 1.4mmHg (p<0.05) and RHR reduced by 2.2b/min
(p<0.05) in the pre workout supplementation group. In the post workout supplementation
group Hemoglobin was increased by 0.82g/dl (p<0.05), RBC by 0.356 million/cm3
(p<0.05), Hematocrit by 1.87% (p<0.05), Platelet by 8.2×103 (p<0.05), SBP reduced by 4.9mmHg
(p<0.05), DBP reduced by 5mmHg (p<0.05) and RHR decreased by 4.3 b/min (p<0.05). It
was concluded that, iron supplementation improved the hematological and physiological
parameters in post aerobic exercise group than in pre aerobic exercise group.
