Beta-Alanine Boosts Performance in Female Masters Athletes - Medscape, 6/16/15 -
"Beta-alanine, a nonessential amino acid, appears to function as a precursor to carnosine in muscle tissue. Carnosine buffers hydrogen ions, making muscle tissue less acidic and delaying fatigue ... randomly assigned 11 female masters cyclists to beta-alanine 800 mg and 11 to placebo four times a day for 28 days" - See
beta-alanine at Amazon.com.
Table: Changes in Endurance During the 28-Day Study Period
Variable
Beta-Alanine Group, %
Placebo Group, %
Time to exhaustion
23
1
Total work completed
21
2
Lactate
-17
0
Beta-Alanine Supplementation Improved Workload Capacity and Cognitive Function of Middle Age Individuals - FASEB Journal, Mar 2016 - "Sarcopenia, the age induced wasting of skeletal muscle, has been seen to be tightly associated with significantly decreased systemic carnosine stores. β-alanine supplementation has previously been shown to increase systemic carnosine concentrations in young adults. Increasing systemic carnosine may result in enhanced antioxidant and pH buffering capabilities within its main storage sites of skeletal muscle and brain tissue. This enhancement may result in improved submaximal endurance exercise capacity and in the prevention of exercise associated cognitive decline ... Before supplementation, average time-to-exhaustion (TTE) for the β-alanine group and Placebo group was 17.3±10.2 and 22.9±10.2 minutes, respectively. After supplementation, all subjects increased their TTE; with β-alanine supplemented subjects cycling significantly longer than those on Placebo (7.9±1.4 vs 0.9±2.5 minutes, respectively, P<0.01). Placebo subjects were 8.9±2.0 seconds slower in completing the Stroop Test at T4 compared to T3 (P=0.04), while the β-alanine group (1.9±2.0 seconds, P=0.8) was not slower at this time point" - [Nutra USA] - See beta-alanine at Amazon.com.
International society of sports nutrition position stand: Beta-Alanine - J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2015 Jul 15 - "Daily supplementation with 4 to 6 g of beta-alanine for at least 2 to 4 weeks has been shown to improve exercise performance, with more pronounced effects in open end-point tasks/time trials lasting 1 to 4 min in duration; 5) Beta-alanine attenuates neuromuscular fatigue, particularly in older subjects, and preliminary evidence indicates that beta-alanine may improve tactical performance" - See beta-alanine at Amazon.com.
Note: The Medscape article recommends 3.2 grams per day divided into four doses spaced throughout the day to avoid paresthesia (a sensation of tingling, tickling, pricking, or burning of a person's skin with no apparent physical cause). That might make the capsules preferable to the powder. Those results are after 28 days so don't expect it to work like caffeine.
Now Foods Beta-Alanine 750 mg - 120 Capsules 2 Pack
