Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Clinical Trial
. 2002 Oct;34(10):1605-13.
doi: 10.1097/00005768-200210000-00012.

The effects of fish oil and isoflavones on delayed onset muscle soreness

Jon Lenn  1 , Timothy Uhl, Carl Mattacola, Gilbert Boissonneault, James Yates, Wissam Ibrahim, Geza Bruckner
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

The effects of fish oil and isoflavones on delayed onset muscle soreness

Jon Lenn et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Oct.

Abstract

Introduction/purpose: Fish oils (FO) have been shown to modulate the inflammatory response through alteration of the eicosanoid pathway. Isoflavones (ISO) appear to reduce the inflammatory pathway through their role as a tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) develops after intense exercise and has been associated with an inflammatory response. Therefore, we hypothesized that physical parameters associated with DOMS could be decreased via the modulation of the inflammatory response by supplementing subjects with either FO or ISO.

Methods: 22 subjects were recruited and randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: FO (1.8 g of omega-3 fatty acids x d(-1)), ISO (120 mg soy isolate x d(-1)), or placebo (PL) (Western fat blend and/or wheat flour). All treatment groups received 100-IU vitamin E x d(-1) to minimize lipid peroxidation of more highly unsaturated fatty acids. Subjects were supplemented 30 d before the exercise and during the week of testing and were instructed to refrain from unusual exercise. DOMS was induced by 50 maximal isokinetic eccentric elbow flexion contractions. Strength parameters, pain, arm circumference, and relaxed arm angle (RANG) were measured at 48, 72, and 168 h post exercise. Cortisol, creatine kinase (CK), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor (TNFalpha), malondialdehyde (MDA), and serum iron were measured before supplementation, after supplementation, and post exercise.

Results: Significant decreases were observed in RANG and strength 48 h postexercise among all groups, and there were significant increases in pain and arm circumference. There were no significant changes among all groups from baseline at 168 h (7 d) post exercise. There were no significant treatment effects between groups for the physical parameters or for cortisol, CK, IL-6, TNFalpha, MDA, or serum iron.

Conclusion: These data indicate FO or ISO, at the doses supplemented, were not effective in ameliorating DOMS with the above-cited protocol.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types