Content area
Full Text
Published online: 15 March 2018
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018
Abstract
Background Taurine is central to many physiological processes, some of which are augmented by exogenous supply and have the potential to facilitate endurance performance; however, its independent effects on performance have not been systematically analysed.
Objective To evaluate the effects of isolated oral taurine ingestion on endurance performance and to assess the contribution of (1) the dose and (2) the supplementation period to the ergogenic effect.
Methods A search was performed using various databases in September 2017. The studies were screened using search criteria for eligibility. Ten peer-reviewed articles were identified for inclusion. A sub-analysis of time-to-exhaustion (TTE) trials (n = 7) was also performed. The effects of (1) dose and (2) the acute (single dose) or chronic (> 1 day) supplementation periods were assessed using meta-regression. The doses of taurine ranged from 1 to 6 g/day and were provided in single doses and for up to 2 weeks among a range of subjects.
Results Taurine ingestion improved overall endurance performance (Hedges' g = 0.40, 95% CI 0.12-0.67, P = 0.004), which was similar in TTE trials (Hedges' g = 0.43, 95% CI 0.12-0.75, P = 0.007). There were no differences between acute or chronic supplementation for the full sample (P = 0.897) or the TTE group (P = 0.896). The dose of taurine did not moderate its effect on endurance performance (P > 0.05).
Conclusion Human endurance performance can be improved by orally ingesting a single dose of taurine in varying amounts (1-6 g).
1Introduction
Taurine, a sulphur-containing amino acid, is one of the primary ingredients in popular energy drinks [1], as well as most meats and seafood [2]. Taurine is the most abundant free amino acid in mammalian tissue, accounting for 50-60% of the free amino acid pool [3], and is available to facilitate a variety of biological processes that can support endurance exercise performance. For example, once inside the muscle, taurine assists with sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ handling [4, 5], with improvements in muscle performance attributed to taurine-facilitated Ca2+ handling of both cardiac and skeletal myocytes [3]. An anti-oxidative role has also been ascribed to taurine, which facilitates taurine's stabilising effects in the mitochondrial matrix, thus...