Spirulina supplements and athletes' performance and recovery
What it found
In people, spirulina supplements seemed to help body composition, aerobic fitness, strength and recovery after exercise, though results varied.
Highly trained athletes often saw little or no change.
What they found
Studies in people
Body composition
Spirulina seemed to have positive effects on body composition, especially in overweight and obese people. This may not apply to people with other conditions or to athletes.
Aerobic fitness
Spirulina appeared to improve aerobic fitness, especially in untrained and moderately trained people.
Strength and power
Results suggested spirulina may improve strength and power performance. Highly trained people saw little or no significant effect.
Antioxidants and recovery
Most studies showed spirulina improved antioxidant status. It also prevented and sped up recovery from exercise-induced lipid peroxidation, muscle damage and inflammation in trained and untrained people.
Other findings
Nutrient content
Spirulina is 60-70% protein and contains all essential amino acids. It is also rich in vitamins, minerals, bioactive compounds, essential fatty acids and antioxidants.
What the authors conclude
“Taken together, the results from these studies are encouraging and may demonstrate the potential benefits of Spirulina supplementation in athletes despite methodological differences.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say the results are encouraging and may show potential benefits of spirulina supplementation in athletes.
- They note these findings come despite methodological differences between the studies.
How it was done
Spirulina is rich in protein, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, and the authors wanted to see whether these nutrients could help athletes at rest and during training.
The authors reviewed published studies on spirulina's makeup, its health effects in people, and its effects in athletes, including nutrition, body composition, performance and exercise-related problems.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- The studies reviewed used different methods, so their results are hard to compare directly.
- This review cannot show a cause-and-effect link between spirulina and any health or performance outcome.
The paper
- Title
- A Review of the Health-Promoting Properties of Spirulina with a Focus on athletes' Performance and Recovery
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Chaouachi M, Vincent S, Groussard C (2024). A Review of the Health-Promoting Properties of Spirulina with a Focus on athletes' Performance and Recovery. Journal of dietary supplements. doi:10.1080/19390211.2023.2208663PubMed 37143238DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error