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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2020 Aug;8(16):e14546.
doi: 10.14814/phy2.14546.

Muscular endurance and muscle metabolic responses to 8 weeks of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation

Takuma Morishima  1 , Yosuke Tsuchiya  2 , Hisashi Ueda  3 , Eisuke Ochi  1   4   5
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Muscular endurance and muscle metabolic responses to 8 weeks of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation

Takuma Morishima et al. Physiol Rep. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Background: It has been well known that exercise training improves muscular endurance; however, whether nutritional strategies can be used to enhance muscular endurance remains unclear. Herein, we tested the hypothesis that 8 weeks of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation, known to promote oxygen availability and lipid metabolism, would attenuate muscular fatigue caused by numerous muscle contractions.

Methods: Nineteen healthy men were randomly assigned to a placebo group (n = 9) and fish oil group (n = 10) in a double-blind fashion. The fish oil group consumed EPA-rich fish oil that contains 600-mg EPA and 260-mg DHA per day for 8 weeks. The placebo group received matching capsules for the same duration of time. After the 8-week intervention, subjects performed muscular endurance test that was repeated knee extensions with weights equal to 40% of the subject's body weight.

Results: Maximal repetitions to exhaustion were recorded. In addition, maximum isometric voluntary muscle contraction (MVC), muscle metabolism using near-infrared spectroscopy, and blood lactate were measured during the test. Subjects in both groups reached exhaustion after the muscular endurance test, while the maximal repetitions did not differ between the groups. Similarly, there is no significant difference in oxygen saturation in muscle tissue (StO2), an index of muscle oxygen availability, between the groups. Also, MVC and blood lactate did not change between groups.

Conclusion: In conclusion, the present study provided evidence that muscle fatigue caused by knee extensions cannot be attenuated by EPA and DHA supplementation in healthy subjects.

Keywords: endurance performance; fish oil; muscle fatigue; oxygen saturation; supplementation.

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Conflict of interest statement

No conflict of interest, financial, or otherwise are declared by the authors.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Experimental design
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Repetitions to exhaustion for each set (a) and total (b) during muscular endurance test in fish oil and placebo groups. Data are expressed as mean ± SD
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Oxygen saturation in muscle tissue (StO2) during muscular endurance test in fish oil and placebo groups. Data are expressed as mean ± SD
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Changes in maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVC) torque in fish oil and placebo groups before (pre‐exercise) and immediately after exercise (postexercise). Data are expressed as mean ± SD. n.s.; not significant
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