Carnitine Supplementation and Skeletal Muscle Mass

What Was Tested

This registered not phased trial tested L-Carnitine.

The primary aim of the current research project is to investigate the effect of carnitine supplementation on muscle strength and body composition.

A secondary aim of this project is to explore the effect of circulating trimethylamine N-oxide elevation, induced by carnitine supplementation on muscle strength and body composition.

It had three arms (groups): carnitine2 (experimental), carnitine (active comparator) and control (no intervention).

No supplementation.

The registry classes the interventions as dietary supplement.

Who Took Part

Enrollment: 24 actual participants took part.

It was open to people of any sex aged from 18 years up to 29 years.

Healthy volunteers could join, not only people with the condition.

Examples of who could join: Must be able to swallow tablets.

The full record lists 1 inclusion and 7 exclusion criteria; among the exclusions: cardiovascular disease; liver disease; kidney disease.

How the Study Was Run

It was run as a randomized, parallel-group and double-blind study.

Because people in this L-Carnitine study were split into groups at random, differences between the groups are less likely to reflect who happened to join each one.

The L-Carnitine group and the comparison group ran side by side rather than switching.

Blinding on both sides kept the participants and researchers unaware of who received L-Carnitine.

Those kept unaware of assignments: participant and investigator.

It started in 2015-11-15 with completion listed for 2016-07-31.

Its stated primary purpose is prevention.

What Was Measured

Primary outcome: Muscle Strength using Biodex System 4 Pro dynamometer (time frame: 24 weeks). Body Composition: Body Fat Mass, Fat Free Mass, and Skeletal Muscle Mass using a bioelectrical impedance analyzer (InBody720) (time frame: 24 weeks).

It also tracked 1 secondary outcome, for example Plasma trimethylamine N-oxide concentration.

What This Means in Plain Language

Put simply, this is a not phased, randomized trial of L-Carnitine in 24 people.

Its size is small, so on its own it can only give an early look.

The trial is marked completed; no results are posted to the registry yet, so nothing here describes outcomes.

More context: the L-Carnitine compound page, all human trials.