A day of competition does not lower an archer's salivary IgA
2 studies · 48 archers measured
The summary today
In the two samples measured, salivary IgA, the antibody that guards the nose and throat, does not fall with competition. In eight Brazilian national team archers a simulated competition of 144 arrows does not separate it from a rest day at any of four samples, even though cortisol is higher after every distance. In forty archers at the Brazilian championship, with saliva collected on waking, IgA on the competition day is in fact higher than on the free practice day, with a medium effect, and it does not go with score (r=0.1). The picture is fragile, though: these are two master's theses from the same research group, the first has its figures only in charts, and both contradict themselves between abstract and results: the first lists IgA in its abstract among the measures the competition changes, while the second states that the difference is not significant even though its results give it at p below 0.01. It can be said that the drop expected in endurance sports was not seen here; it cannot be said that competition has no effect on immune defences, because nobody counted days of illness.
Also phrased as: "immune defences after competition"; "competition stress and colds"; "the archer's immunity"; "salivary iga and stress"; "falling ill after a championship"
In practice
It is said that people fall ill more easily after major competitions, because stress lowers the defences, and that in archery too the week after a championship is the one at risk.
Evidence
-
2021
For Archers Published later
8 Brazilian national team archers, 4 men and 4 women, a simulated competition of 144 arrows at 90, 70, 50 and 30 metres against a rest day, saliva at 8, 12, 14 and 17 hours: salivary IgA shows no difference between the two days, while cortisol is higher after every distance. The thesis abstract lists IgA among the measures the simulated competition changes, but the results and discussion say it does not change. Values only in charts, master's thesis.
Caracterização das demandas fisiológicas e intervenção nutricional no Tiro com Arco · Levy Aragão de Oliveira
-
2023
For Archers Published later
40 male archers at the Brazilian championship, saliva on waking 24 hours apart, after 15 minutes of stillness: IgA on competition day is higher than on the free practice day (p below 0.01, Cohen's d 0.50). The abstract of the same thesis gives the difference as not significant, so the direction is clear but the size is not.
A quantificação do estado emocional em ambiente competitivo: estudo de caso no tiro com arco · Darlan Souza
-
2023
Context Archers Published later
At the same championship, across 37 archers, salivary IgA does not go with the competition score: r=0.1, a negligible correlation.
A quantificação do estado emocional em ambiente competitivo: estudo de caso no tiro com arco · Darlan Souza
Status history
- 2021 Reported Eight Brazilian national team archers, four men and four women, shoot 144 arrows in a simulated competition, and their salivary IgA cannot be told apart from the same time on a rest day at any of the four samples, even though cortisol is higher after every distance. Eight athletes, figures only in charts, a master's thesis: reported.
- 2023 Reported At the Brazilian championship forty male archers gave saliva on waking on the free practice day and on competition day: IgA on competition day does not fall, it is in fact higher, with a medium effect (d=0.50), and it does not go with score (r=0.1). The direction matches the first study, but it is another thesis from the same group and the comparison is reported in two different ways between abstract and results: two studies in favour, both weak, and the status does not rise.
Related
Related articles
Research lines
Studies describe groups of archers, and your own numbers show how far the finding applies to your shooting.
See the programmeCite
Campagna, M. (2026). A day of competition does not lower an archer's salivary IgA (Version 2). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/health/salivary-iga-competition-day
@misc{campagna2026_igasalivaregara,
author = {Campagna, Matteo},
title = {A day of competition does not lower an archer's salivary IgA},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/health/salivary-iga-competition-day},
note = {Version 2; accessed 2026-10-16}
}
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