Omega-3 fatty acids enhance the beneficial effect of BCAA supplementation on muscle function following eccentric contractions

ABSTRACT

Background

This study investigated the combined effect of branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) and fish oil (FO) on muscle damage caused by eccentric contractions (ECCs) of the elbow flexors, with a special focus on muscular function.

Methods

Twenty-nine untrained male participants were enrolled in this double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study. The participants were randomly assigned to the placebo (PL) group (n = 9), BCAA supplement group (n = 10), and BCAA+FO supplement group (n = 10). The BCAA+FO group consumed eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) 600 mg and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) 260 mg per day for 8 weeks, while the BCAA and BCAA+FO groups consumed 9.6 g per day for 3 days prior to and until 5 days after ECCs. Participants performed six sets of 10 ECCs at 100% maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) using dumbbells. Changes in MVC torque, range of motion (ROM), muscle soreness using visual analog scales, upper circumference, muscle thickness, echo intensity, and serum creatine kinase (CK) were assessed before, immediately after, and 1, 2, 3, and 5 days after ECCs.

Results

The MVC torque was significantly higher in the BCAA+FO group than in the PL group immediately after ECCs (p < 0.05) but not in the BCAA group. Both BCAA and BCAA+FO groups showed greater ROM and lower muscle soreness than the PL group (p < 0.05). CK was significantly lower in the BCAA group than in the PL group at 5 days after ECCs (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

This study reveals that supplementation with BCAA and FO may favorably impact immediate recovery of peak torque production. Alternatively, in comparison to PL group, BCAA supplementation favorably reduces creatine kinase.

KEYWORDS:

• Ergogenic aid
• supplement
• sports nutrition
• essential amino acids
• omega-3 fatty acids

Abbreviations

AA: Arachidonic acid; ANOVA: Analysis of variance; BCAA: Branched-chain amino acid; CK: Creatine kinase; CV: Coefficient of variation; DGLA: Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid; DHA: Docosahexaenoic acid; ECCs: Eccentric contractions; EPA: Eicosapentaenoic acid; FO: Fish oil; MVC: Maximal voluntary contraction; PL: Placebo; ROM: Range of motion; SD: Standard deviation

Acknowledgments

The authors appreciate the time and effort put in by all volunteer participants.

Authors’ contributions

K.Y. and E.O. conceived the study. Y.T., K.Y., and EO participated in the design and coordination of the study. Y.T., N.S., H.U., K.T., and EO carried out the data collection and performed the statistical analysis. Y.T. and EO drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the committee of Teikyo Heisei University (ID: R02-34). Moreover, the study was registered at the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN-CTR identifier: UMIN000042925).

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by Nippon Suisan Kaisha ltd. However, the sponsor was not involved in data collection or data entry and there were no restrictions on publication.