Curcumin may help reduce oxidative stress in muscles

Published: 2-Jul-2014

Meriva curcumin formulation from Indena may reduce exercise-induced DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness), finds study

In a new study by Spanish researchers completed at the Olympic Training Centre of Barcelona, Indena's Meriva lecithin-based curcumin was found to reduce muscle soreness from oxidative stress and inflammation associated with continuous exercise, such as downhill running.

The study found that supplementation with Meriva reduced muscle distress as evidenced by MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) in the posterior or medial compartment of the thighs and was associated with less discomfort in the lower limb and a blunted systemic inflammatory response when compared with placebo. The hallmark of DOMS is delayed (from hours to days) muscular discomfort and stiffness after unaccustomed or strenuous exercise, with soreness being felt most strongly 24 to 72 hours after the exercise.

This randomised, placebo-controlled, single-blinded clinical study, is the first to investigate the effects of Meriva on DOMS and involved 20 male, healthy and moderately active volunteers, randomised to Meriva 1g, twice daily (200mg curcumin) or placebo.

Supplementation was initiated 48 hours prior to a downhill running test and was continued for 24 hours after the test (four days in total). Muscle soreness was quantified by magnetic resonance imaging, laboratory tests and histologic analyses on muscle samples obtained 48 hours after the test.

Volunteer-reported discomfort intensity was also recorded: they were asked to indicate the site of pain on a drawing representing the lower limbs, and to rank pain intensity on a 0–4 point scale, where 0=no pain, 4=disabling pain when descending or climbing stairs.

The observation from the study suggests that curcumin as Meriva may be beneficial to reduce exercise-induced DOMS and larger studies could provide statistical significance also for parameters like the histological evaluation of muscle – that only showed a trend to improvement in this study.

You may also like