4. Discussion
interstitial glucose decline, fatigue, PLF
In this study, we found that the continued carbohydrate intake with gummies during a round of golf, although not found to be effective on golf performance, may prevent the reduction of interstitial glucose levels and attenuated fatigue in the controlled study. Moreover, gummy intake had the potential to sustain concentration during a round of golf.Continuous carbohydrate intake with gummies was found to prevent interstitial glucose decline on the 4th–6th, 7th–9th, 10th–12th, 13th–15th, and 16th holes. In addition, no decrease in interstitial glucose levels was observed in the second half of the round (In the present study, the participants ate a breakfast containing 1.02 kg BW of carbohydrates per kg BW. A previous study reported that if a pre-exercise carbohydrate-rich meal is combined with the ingestion of carbohydrates during exercise, then the improvements in endurance capacity during cycling [Continuous carbohydrate intake with gummies was found to reduce the increase in PLF on the 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 18th holes (Moreover, continuous carbohydrate intake with gummies was found to reduce the decrease in PLC on all 18 holes (In this study, the continuous intake of carbohydrates with gummies did not affect driving performance. Previous studies have reported an association between fatigue and decreased driving performance using various test diets [In this study, the 2.5 m putt success rate was not significant for the main effects of trial and time (In this study, scores were not significant for the main effects of trial and time. On the USPGA Tour, 61–87% of the scores can be explained by driving distance, fairway percentage, par on percentage, and putts made [A main effect of time was noted on putting success (A main effect of time was found on the driving distance (To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study whose results demonstrate that continuous intake of carbohydrates during a round of golf attenuated the decline in interstitial glucose level and prevented fatigue from the middle of the golf round, and concentrations were maintained in the last half of the round of golf. Furthermore, the results showed a simultaneous increase in the fatigue level and decrease in interstitial glucose levels. Therefore, as a practical application, competitive golfers should plan nutritional supplementation to maintain interstitial glucose during a round of golf. Although gummies were selected for this study because of their easy availability, this could be achieved using other foods, such as bread, rice balls, and dried fruits, which have high carbohydrate contents and are easy to consume. Competitive golfers should consume these carbohydrate-rich foods on a sustained basis to prevent fatigue when playing golf.The strength of this study was attributed to the use of a standardized real-life application study design and on-course testing and measurement of interstitial glucose levels during a round of golf and anthropometric data of competitive golfers. This study had several limitations. First, this study was conducted with an open-study design, and no placebo was set. Placebo gummies with noncaloric artificial sweeteners were not ethically used in this study because they exceeded the maximum no-action dose. Therefore, the study design may have influenced the cognitive performance results to a small degree. Second, carbohydrate-supplemented gummies were used; however, the effect of chewing could not be eliminated. Previous studies have shown that chewing is associated with attenuated brain activity [