Trial reportEuropean journal of applied physiology2014
The effects of 12 weeks of beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate free acid supplementation on muscle mass, strength, and power in resistance-trained individuals: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.
Trial report in European journal of applied physiology, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 120 citations in OpenAlex.
- Causal role of genetically predicted impairment of branched-chain amino acid catabolism on insulin secretion and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes.Diabetes, obesity & metabolism · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Overtraining in Resistance Exercise: An Exploratory Systematic Review and Methodological Appraisal of the Literature.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2020Pooled it
- A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis of the Effect of Resistance Training on Whole-Body Muscle Growth in Healthy Adult Males.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Pooled it
- HMB supplementation combined with high-intensity functional exercise supports aerobic capacity but not strength in trained and untrained males: a randomized controlled trial.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2026Trial
- Effects of Beta-Hydroxy-Beta-Methylbutyrate Supplementation on Older Adults with Sarcopenia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2023Trial
- Effects of β-Hydroxy β-Methylbutyric Supplementation in Combination with Conservative Non-Invasive Treatments in Athletes with Patellar Tendinopathy: A Pilot Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Trial
- Effects of Co-Ingestion of β-Hydroxy-β-Methylbutyrate and L-Arginine α-Ketoglutarate on Jump Performance in Young Track and Field Athletes.Nutrients · 2021Trial
- Combined protein and calcium β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate induced gains in leg fat free mass: a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2020Trial
- Sodium Reduction, Metabolomic Profiling, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Untreated Black Hypertensives.Hypertension (Dallas, Tex. : 1979) · 2019Trial
- Equivalent Hypertrophy and Strength Gains in β-Hydroxy-β-Methylbutyrate- or Leucine-supplemented Men.Medicine and science in sports and exercise · 2019Trial
- Trial
- International society of sports nutrition position stand: β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB).Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Review
- Nutritional Supplements for Muscle Hypertrophy: Mechanisms and Morphology-Focused Evidence.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Article
- High-dose medium-term HMB supplementation did not trigger body composition changes in trained and untrained males under usual conditions or high-intensity functional exercise.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Article
- Superior bioavailability of the calcium salt form of β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate compared with the free acid form.Amino acids · 2024Article
- Nutritional Compounds to Improve Post-Exercise Recovery.Nutrients · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionStudies utilizing beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB) supplementation in trained populations are limited. No long-term studies utilizing HMB free acid (HMB-FA) have been conducted. Therefore, we investigated the effects of 12 weeks of HMB-FA supplementation on skeletal muscle hypertrophy, body composition, strength, and power in trained individuals. We also determined the effects of HMB-FA on muscle damage and performance during an overreaching cycle.
methodsA three-phase double-blind, placebo- and diet-controlled randomized intervention study was conducted. Phase 1 was an 8-week-periodized resistance-training program; Phase 2 was a 2-week overreaching cycle; and Phase 3 was a 2-week taper. Muscle mass, strength, and power were examined at weeks 0, 4, 8, and 12 to assess the chronic effects of HMB-FA; and assessment of these, as well as cortisol, testosterone, and creatine kinase (CK) was performed at weeks 9 and 10 of the overreaching cycle.
resultsHMB-FA resulted in increased total strength (bench press, squat, and deadlift combined) over the 12-week training (77.1 ± 18.4 vs. 25.3 ± 22.0 kg, p < 0.001); a greater increase in vertical jump power (991 ± 168 vs. 630 ± 167 W, p < 0.001); and increased lean body mass gain (7.4 ± 4.2 vs. 2.1 ± 6.1 kg, p < 0.001) in HMB-FA- and placebo-supplemented groups, respectively. During the overreaching cycle, HMB-FA attenuated increases in CK (-6 ± 91 vs. 277 ± 229 IU/l, p < 0.001) and cortisol (-0.2 ± 2.9 vs. 4.5 ± 1.7 μg/dl, p < 0.003) in the HMB-FA- and placebo-supplemented groups, respectively.
conclusionsThese results suggest that HMB-FA enhances hypertrophy, strength, and power following chronic resistance training, and prevents decrements in performance following the overreaching.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.