Comparison of Two β‐alanine Dosing Protocols Using a Sustained Release Formulation on Muscle Carnosine Elevations
Authors: Church David D , Hoffman Jay R , Varanoske Alyssa N , Wang Ran , Baker Kayla , La Monica Michael B , Beyer Kyle S , Dodd Sarah J , Oliveira Leonardo P , Fukuda David H , Stout Jeffrey R 
Published: November 2023

Background

β‐alanine (BA) is a non‐proteogenic amino acid that combines with histidine to form carnosine in skeletal muscle. Carnosine is an intracellular buffer, and has been suggested to have anti‐oxidant properties. The ergogenic effects of BA supplementation have been well‐established, especially in anaerobic exercise performance lasting between 60–240 s. The synthesis of muscle carnosine is suggested to follow zero‐order kinetics with respect to the availability of BA. However, increases in BA ingestion, using an instant release formulation, are also accompanied with greater occurrence of paresthesia, a known side effect limiting the daily BA dose. Sustained release formulations though have not been associated with this side effect suggesting that a greater daily dose may be possible. As such, the purpose of this study was to determine whether a doubling of the recommended daily dose of BA can result in a similar increase in muscle carnosine in half the time.

Methods

Twenty‐seven healthy men and women volunteered to participate and were randomly assigned to either a daily 6 g dose of placebo (PL; n=8, 24.1 ± 2.3y, 1.74 ± 0.09m, 79.9 ± 14.4 kg), 6 g dose of BA (6G; n=9, 22.9 ± 2.8y, 1.73 ± 0.10m, 72.0 ± 11.3 kg), or a 12 g of dose of BA (12G; n=10, 25.3 ± 3.2y, 1.73 ± 0.11m, 74.9 ± 17.3 kg). Both PL and 6G supplemented for 4‐weeks, while 12G supplemented for 2‐weeks only. A resting blood draw and muscle biopsy were obtained prior to (PRE) and following (POST) supplementation. During both testing sessions participants performed two maximal voluntary isometric contractions before and after five sets of 50 isokinetic repetitions performed at 180°·sec−1 on an isokinetic dynamometer. Muscle carnosine content was determined by HPLC. Complete blood cell counts (CBC) were performed from resting blood samples. Data were analyzed using a repeated measures ANOVA. In addition, POST‐PRE change (Δ) in muscle carnosine content (ΔCarn) was analyzed with a one‐way ANOVA.

Results

A significant interaction (F=4.296, p=0.025) was noted for muscle carnosine. Significant elevations from PRE to POST were observed in both 6G (8.48 mmol·kg ww−1 to 12.82 mmol·kg ww−1, respectively) and 12G (6.87 mmol·kg ww−1 to 9.68 mmol·kg ww−1, respectively) but not for PL (9.91 mmol·kg ww−1 to 8.96 mmol·kg ww−1, respectively). Significant differences in ΔCarn were seen between PL and both 6G (p=0.009) and 12G (p=0.048). However, no differences were noted in ΔCarn between 6G and 12G (p=0.392). In addition, no significant interactions were noted for muscle performance testing, or CBC. Further, no differences in the appearance of side effects were noted between the groups.

Conclusion

The present study indicated that a 12G daily dose of sustained release BA for 2‐weeks was able to accelerate muscle carnosine elevations to similar levels noted following a daily 6g BA dose consumed for 4‐weeks. The accelerated elevation in muscle carnosine appeared to be safe and was not associated with any increase in side effects.

Support or Funding Information

Natural Alternatives International, Inc.