ergo-log.com

Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "

about us

/

contact

/

15.05.2023


Worn knee a bit less painful due to L-carnitine supplementation

According to a human study, supplementation with L-carnitine reduces pain to a certain extent in mild forms of knee osteoarthritis. A dose of 750 milligrams per day is sufficient. But if you take NSAIDs, carnitine may not have any effect.


Worn knee a bit less painful due to L-carnitine supplementation


Study
Researchers from Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in Iran gave 33 women with mild pain complaints due to osteoarthritis in the knee joint 750 milligrams of L-carnitine every day for 8 weeks. This dose was divided into 3 intakes of 250 milligrams each. The Iranians used L-carnitine-L-tartrate [chemical structure above].

A comparable group of 36 women used a placebo daily for 8 weeks.

Just before the supplementation started and on the last day of the supplementation period, the women reported how painful their knee was. The researchers also measured the concentration of a number of inflammatory factors in the subjects' blood.

Results
The concentration of interleukin-1-beta and matrix metalloproteinase-1 was reduced in the supplement group, while it increased in the placebo group.

The inflammatory factor interleukin-1-beta is increased in arthritis. Interleukin-1-beta stimulates the immune system to break down cartilage via matrix metalloproteinase-1, among other things.

Click on the table below for a larger version.


Worn knee a bit less painful due to L-carnitine supplementation


Worn knee a bit less painful due to L-carnitine supplementation


Pain scores decreased in both groups. The decrease in pain was significantly greater in the women who had received carnitine.

When carnitine doesn't work...
The subjects in this study used paracetamol as needed to control pain. They did not use NSAIDs.

In a more recent study - also from Iran - researchers gave women with osteoarthritis in their knee 1 gram of carnitine daily for 12 weeks, without any reduction in pain scores. [BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2021 Feb 17;22(1):195.] In that particular study, all women used NSAIDs.

Source:
J Am Coll Nutr. 2016 Sep-Oct;35(7):597-603.

More:
Carnitine supplementation promotes fat loss | Meta-study 10.07.2022
Carnitine versus autism | Higher dose, longer administration period, better results 01.10.2021
During exercise, the body burns more fat by supplementing with L-carnitine 23.09.2021
Carnitine makes type 2 diabetics healthier 25.06.2020

Archives:
Carnitine
Joints
Pain


Shilajit repairs worn knee Painfully worn knee? Supplementation with ASU may reduce your problem Do you suffer from worn joints? A low-carb diet may help

Shilajit repairs worn knee
In Asian countries, local healers use shilajit, a kind of asphalt mined in high mountains, against pain and inflammation in worn-out joints.

Painfully worn knee? Supplementation with ASU may reduce your problem
If you do not or do not respond well to glucosamine, there is an alternative.

Do you suffer from worn joints? A low-carb diet may help
Do you suffer from painful and worn-out joints? You may alleviate your problem by drastically reducing the amount of carbohydrates in your diet.