WHY YOU DON'T NEED BCAA'S
Updated: Jun 3
BCAA’s are another one of the most popular muscle-building/sports performance
supplements on the market today. On paper, BCAA’s sound amazing. BCAA’s make up
approximately one third of the protein content of muscle and include the amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Unfortunately, research for BCAA supplementation in the presence of adequate protein intake for a referenced athlete or individual does not seem to promote a benefit.1
Another example can clearly be seen in a study by Churchward-Venne et al., 2012. 24 males participated in a study that involved being sectioned into groups that supplemented with either a complete whey source or a lower dose of whey protein combined with leucine and other essential amino acids. The results showed that even though the low dose combined with EAA’s was able to augment skeletal muscle growth for a few hours following exercise, only complete whey could continue to keep up the pace and keep the muscles growing.2
Keep in mind, people, the global market for sports-based nutrition is lucrative and was projected to increase by over 50% back in 2022.3 Who knows how much it has elevated since then??? Yes, some supplements do work, but this is a billion-dollar industry we are talking about here, and to maintain these numbers, the collective industry is going to have to allow some supplements to slide through to keep up with the bottom line. Optimizing your performance comes a distant second, my friends.
BCAA UPDATE...
The information above was from approximately a decade ago when I wrote my first nutrition book. Since then, the team at Examine.com has been so kind as to provide us with even more evidence for why you probably don't need to supplement with BCAA's
The study
This systematic review assessed the effects of BCAAs on athletic performance, body composition, recovery, and biochemical, hormonal, and molecular parameters. For inclusion in the review, a study had to include athletes with relevant training experience, oral supplementation with BCAAs in isolation (studies using multi-ingredient BCAA supplements were excluded), a control or placebo group, and a preintervention and postintervention test.
Of the 21 studies included in the review, 10 assessed performance, 3 assessed body composition, 7 assessed muscle soreness or recovery, and 17 assessed changes in biochemical, hormonal, or molecular signaling.
The results
Performance: Four studies assessed cyclists or runners, 3 assessed athletes undertaking resistance training, 1 assessed volleyball players, and 2 assessed soccer players. Overall, BCAAs had a trivial effect on performance.
Body composition: There were 3 studies, including 1 in runners, 1 in resistance athletes, and 1 in cyclists. BCAAs had negligible effects on lean mass, fat mass, and body weight.
Muscle soreness/recovery: Of the 7 studies, 1 reported that BCAAs reduced perceived exertion and mental fatigue, and 3 reported that BCAAs reduced muscle soreness after exercise. Three studies reported that soreness was comparable between the BCAA and placebo groups.
Changes in biochemical, hormonal, or molecular signaling: Overall, BCAAs induced changes associated with anabolism (e.g., increased muscle BCAA concentrations, a lower tryptophan-to-BCAA ratio, acute increases in testosterone and insulin, acute increases in creatine kinase, and increased mammalian target of rapamycin — mTOR — signaling).
Note
As noted by the authors, many of the included studies compared BCAAs to a nonprotein placebo or did not report total protein intake per day. In addition, the few studies that did control protein intake between conditions provided a suboptimal dose for athletes (i.e., less than 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day). Considering all of this, the benefits of BCAAs for athletes may be negligible within the context of a high-protein diet.
In closing, you'll note that the only real area of promise for BCAAs is in perceived exertion, fatigue, and muscle soreness levels. BCAAs may reduce lactate levels in untrained women, according to one study. 6 Also, glycogen depletion rates may become lower, and "proteins involved in muscle protein atrophy (breakdown) appear to be suppressed following ingestion of BCAA supplementation and exercise, which could be an indirect mechanism of muscle protein synthesis." There was a study by Stoppani et al. (2009) that clearly showed BCAAs were superior to whey and an ingested sports drink. 7 However, the diet was neither recorded nor controlled, and the amount of Whey referenced in the study was very low at 28 grams. Lastly, the study was funded by an outside source that produced the supplement, which screams a conflict of interest. Not to mention that Whey protein is one of the most well-researched and documented supplements on the market that contains a majority of positive reviews both in scientific literature and in the real world.
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:
#1-Examine.com. Supplement-Goals Reference Guide. Examine.com, 2011.
#2-Churchward-Venne, T A, et al. “Supplementation of a Suboptimal Protein Dose with Leucine or Essential Amino Acids: Effects on
Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis at Rest and Following Resistance Exercise in Men.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1
June 2012, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22451437.
#3- Hamilton, Lee, et al. “BCAA Supplements Are Just Hype – Here's a Better Way to Build Muscles.” The Conversation, The Conversation US,
Inc. , 2 May 2018, theconversation.com/bcaa-supplements-are-just-hype-heres-a-better-way-to-build-muscles-84411.
#5-Martinho DV, Nobari H, Faria A, Field A, Duarte D, Sarmento HOral Branched-Chain Amino Acids Supplementation in Athletes: A Systematic Review.Nutrients.(2022-Sep-27)
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