The relationship between training load and the mucosal immune responses has been a recent focus of research. Intense training and the psychological stress associated with competition seems to lower the salivary IgA (slgA) levels in athletes. Salivary IgA antibodies provide protection against infections and play a significant anti viral role at the mucosal surface. Salivary lgA deficient persons are susceptible to recurrent infections, mostly of the upper respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts. The purpose of this study was to monitor the salivary IgA response to different aerobic and anaerobic land tasks and two aerobic swimming protocols, using several time points in order to study the time effects of the exercise loads in the mucosal immunity of the athletes.
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