Spirulina and muscle damage after hard exercise in rugby players
What it found
In elite male rugby players, taking spirulina for 7 weeks stopped rises in blood markers of inflammation and muscle damage after exhausting exercise.
It also helped those markers return to normal faster.
What they found
Studies in people
Fat damage after exercise
A marker of fat damage rose by 17.8% right after the running test in the placebo group. In the spirulina group it did not rise. By 24 hours later, levels in the spirulina group were lower than at rest.
Inflammation after exercise
An inflammation marker called CRP rose by 10.4% right after exercise in the placebo group but stayed flat with spirulina. A day later, CRP had fallen by 27.5% below resting levels in the spirulina group.
Muscle damage after exercise
A muscle damage marker called CK rose by 15.5% right after exercise in the placebo group. It did not change in the spirulina group. After 24 hours, CK in the spirulina group had dropped by 34.2% below its starting level.
Other blood markers unchanged
Several other markers of antioxidant status and muscle stress showed no difference between the spirulina and placebo groups at any point.
What the authors conclude
- They say spirulina may prevent fat damage, swelling and muscle harm caused by exhausting exercise, and may speed up recovery.
- They recommend spirulina for athletes who train heavily, especially those who do not get enough antioxidants from food.
- They note that how spirulina works during exercise is poorly understood and call for more research.
How it was done
Hard training and matches cause tissue damage, swelling and stress from free radicals in athletes. The authors wanted to see if spirulina could limit these effects in top-level team-sport players.
Seventeen elite male rugby players took either 5.7 g of spirulina a day or a placebo for 7 weeks. Blood was drawn before, right after and 24 hours after an exhausting running test. Five other players dropped out because of injuries.
What it can’t tell you
- Only 17 men finished the trial, so the results might not apply to women, older adults or casual exercisers.
- The study measured blood markers rather than actual match performance or injury rates.
- It looked at one specific running test, so the findings may not match every type of sport or workout.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- CHU and University of Liège, Belgium
The paper
- Title
- Spirulina supplementation prevents exercise-induced lipid peroxidation, inflammation and skeletal muscle damage in elite rugby players
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Chaouachi M, Gautier S, Carnot Y, et al (2022). Spirulina supplementation prevents exercise-induced lipid peroxidation, inflammation and skeletal muscle damage in elite rugby players. Journal of human nutrition and dietetics. doi:10.1111/jhn.13014Free full textPubMed 35394687DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error