{"ok":true,"entry":{"slug":"beta-alanine","kind":"supplement","name":"beta-alanine","aliases":["beta alanine","β-alanine"],"brands_sg":["Myprotein","NOW Foods"],"class":"amino acid","tags":["fitness"],"use_for":"hard efforts of 1–4 min · buffers acid build-up in muscle","use_after":"divided doses through the day","use_duration":"2–4 weeks of loading matter","take_with":"meals · more carnosine gained when taken with food","pros":["studies use 4–6 g a day for at least 2–4 weeks","effects most pronounced in all-out efforts of 1–4 min","appears safe at 1.6–6.4 g a day for up to 8 weeks"],"cons":["tingling (paresthesia) from single doses of 800 mg+","no clear gain under 60 s · endurance data mixed","no safety data past 1 year · experts split on value"],"dose_note":"studies use 4–6 g a day in divided doses of 2 g or less for at least 2 weeks; muscle carnosine rises more after 4 weeks; single doses of 800 mg or more can cause tingling that fades in 60–90 min; divided or sustained-release doses reduce it","dosage":{"ul":null,"unit":"g","fda_dv":null,"rda_ai":null,"ul_status":"none_established","population":"general adult","hsa_max_daily":null},"ul_status":"none_established","sg_class":null,"cautions":["under 18 — studies are mostly in men aged 18–25","regular use for months — safety at that length is not established","asian users — some data: less effect in men, more tingling in women"],"clashes":[{"src":["issn_beta_alanine"],"note":"modest added effect; bicarbonate itself can cause gut upset","with":"sodium bicarbonate"},{"src":["issn_beta_alanine"],"note":"combo not clearly better than creatine alone in a 10-week study","with":"creatine"}],"sources":[{"id":"nih_ods_exercise","url":"https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/ExerciseAndAthleticPerformance-HealthProfessional/","label":"NIH ODS — Dietary Supplements for Exercise and Athletic Performance (Health Professional), beta-alanine section","quote":"beta-alanine supplements (4–6 g/day consumed for at least 2–4 weeks) can improve high-intensity exercise performance that lasts more than 60 seconds … Beta-alanine supplementation appears to be safe at 1.6–6.4 g/day for up to 8 weeks … consuming a conventional dose of beta-alanine of at least 800 mg or exceeding 10 mg/kg body mass can provoke moderate to severe paresthesia … There are no safety data on use of the supplement for more than 1 year … There is insufficient expert consensus on the value of taking beta-alanine … It advises users to take beta-alanine supplements with meals to augment muscle carnosine levels","accessed":"2026-08-27"},{"id":"issn_beta_alanine","url":"https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC4501114","label":"ISSN position stand: beta-alanine (Trexler et al., JISSN 2015)","quote":"Four weeks of beta-alanine supplementation (4–6 g daily) significantly augments muscle carnosine concentrations, thereby acting as an intracellular pH buffer … Beta-alanine supplementation currently appears to be safe in healthy populations at recommended doses … The only reported side effect is paraesthesia (tingling), but studies indicate this can be attenuated by using divided lower doses (1.6 g) or using a sustained-release formula … more pronounced effects in open end-point tasks/time trials lasting 1 to 4 min in duration … a chronic loading dose of 4 to 6 g daily in divided doses of 2 g or less, for a minimum of two weeks … Combining beta-alanine consumption with a meal during beta-alanine loading has also been shown to be effective for further augmenting muscle carnosine levels … Currently, there is no safety data on the long-term use of beta-alanine (i.e., > 1 year) … the body of literature suggests a modest additive effect when adding SB to beta-alanine supplementation … Individual responses to SB supplementation may vary, likely due to side effects including headache and gastrointestinal discomfort … Only creatine + beta-alanine improved body composition and weekly training volume for squat and bench press, but differences were not significantly greater than creatine alone … males of Asian descent may experience a reduced effect, with Asian females experiencing greater paraesthesia","accessed":"2026-08-27"}],"brand_certs":null,"updated_at":"2026-08-29T16:16:12.75901+08:00"},"disclaimer":"kozen-x is not a medical device and does not give medical advice. it lists what published sources have written down. absence of a record is not the same as safe."}