Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), Bodybuilding and Misinformation

I often browse through bodybuilding websites such as bodybuilding.com. I have referred to this website for many years now and I often find myself committing to the passion that is bodybuilding. The sport is intriguing to me because it combines both nutrition and exercise into one physically and mentally dominating sport. I know a few friends who are into bodybuilding and plan on doing a couple upcoming shows. They often tell me about how the sport is more demanding than any other sport out there. The commitment that it requires goes beyond any other sport, and because of this bodybuilding demands the creation of new and innovative nutritional products, in comes the sports supplement industry. Sports supplements are marketed towards all individuals, but bodybuilders are often the number 1 customers. A new product has garnered a lot of attention in the bodybuilding community recently because it is said to stimulate the heart of the sport, fat-loss and lean muscle mass increase. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) has recently been glorified in the world of bodybuilding and because of this I thought it would be good to discuss CLA for this week's blog.

First off what is CLA? Well, its an isomer of the essential fatty acid linoleic acid (omega-6). CLA can be found in ruminant meats (i.e. lamb, beef) and dairy products. Although it can be found in food sources, CLA is often consumed through supplements because its food source levels are rather low. In comes stores like GNC that sell CLA supplements anywhere in the price range of $30-$60 dollars. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, sports supplements are expensive and often the industry itself thrives off of specific communities like bodybuilders.

So why do bodybuilders rave about CLA? And why has it become more and more popular in the sports supplement world today? Well according to past studies, CLA is said to bring about increased fat-loss and lean muscle gains (Reform Mag, 2004). It is also said to bring about increases in muscular strength, and increased resting metabolic rate. All of these properties excite bodybuilders because the sport itself is structured around fat-loss and lean muscle mass. However, although studies have supported these outcomes of CLA intake, it is important to note that most of the studies done have involved animal test subjects and not humans. And the studies that were done on humans produced conflicting results. Multiple studies have shown that CLA doesn't produce any significant fat loss in humans (Seteck et al., 2006). In fact one study illustrated that CLA supplementation didnt bring about any significant changes in weight, fat mass, resting metabolic rate, or BMI. Other human based studies have supported the idea that CLA improves a person's lean body mass, but doesn't improve muscular strength (Kreider et al. 2002).

For CLA supplements, similar to every other sports supplement, there is always misinformation being passed around. For CLA it is advertised to bring about fat-loss, lean mass gains and increased strength but supplement manufactures do not reveal that these results are predominantly connected to studies in mice and not humans. This misdirection associated with sports supplements is not uncommon and is the driving force behind my blogs. I believe that there needs to be more educational resources on various sports supplements, taking more of a public health approach so to speak. My goal for these blogs is to bring about public awareness on various sports supplements because it is often hard to find creditable information. I am not a doctor in sports nutrition, I am not even a registered dietitian (yet), but I have been educated on nutrition and sports supplements. Hopefully my blogs have worked to achieve this "public awareness" since sports supplements are and will always be an important factor in the nutrition and athletic world!

References:
Dunford, M. (Ed.) & Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutritionists Dietetics Practice Group (2006). Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals. 4th Ed., Chicago, IL: American Dietetic Association.

Kreider, R. & Wilson, M. (2002). Effects of Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation during resistance training on body composition, bone density, strength, and selected hematological markers. The Journal of Strength and Condition Research, 16(3), 325-334. Retrieved from the Ryerson Library database.

Reform Mag. (2004). The Word is Out! CLA works!. Retrieved from: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/reform12.htm

Steck, S.E., Chalecki, A.M., Miller, P., Conway, J., Austin, G.L., Harden, J.W., Albright, C.D. & Thuillier, P. (2007). Conjugated Linoleic Acid Supplementation for Twelve Weeks Increases Lean Body Mass in Obese Humans. The Journal of Nutrition and Disease, 137, 1188-1193. Retrieved from the Ryerson Library Database.

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