Tart cherry juice for muscle damage recovery ๐
Data from 19 studies.
Effects of Tart Cherry Juice Supplementation on Recovery from Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage in Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Study Details
This new meta-analysis compiled data from 19 studies (385 participants) which investigated the effects of tart cherry supplementation on muscle damage in athletes ๐
Here is what they found โฌ๏ธ
Key Findings
๐ช Tart cherry juice significantly improved maximal voluntary force recovery across all time points
(immediately post-exercise to 96hr post-exercise)
โคด๏ธ Tart cherry also improved countermovement jump recovery at 48hr post-exercise, but no other time points
๐ฉธ Plus, significantly reduced CRP immediately and up to 48hr post-exercise
โ No significant pooled effects were shown for muscle soreness, CK, IL-6, TNF-ฮฑ, ROM
๐ There was significant heterogeneity across trials
๐ And results also suggested model-specific responses (benefits at some time points in whole body assessments, but not in isolated assessments)
Conclusion
Tart cherry juice enhances some aspects of muscle damage recovery in athletes ๐
Plus from an applied perceptive, additional carbs immediately post-exercise will do nothing but enhance recovery ๐
Minimal downsides, potentially significant upsides โ
Reference
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41945263/
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