Milk Peptide Intake May Decrease Muscle Damage after Eccentric Exercise

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the influence of milk peptide intake on the recovery from muscle damage following high-intensity eccentric exercise. To clarify this issue, we designed a cross over comparison study between peptide intake and control after eccentric calf raise exercise. Six healthy male volunteers (ranging from 19 to 22 years) performed high-intensity eccentric calf raise exercise. The CK, MRI T2 value of the calf were measured at pre-, post-, and on, day 1, 2, 3, 5 and 8 following the exercise to evaluate muscle damage as well as muscle soreness using a visual analog scale (VAS). Statistical differences in all measurements between the peptide and control condition were analyzed using two-factorial ANOVA. The peak value of each measurement between two trials was analyzed using the T-test. A statistical significance of p<0.05 was adopted.
The peak CK level (p<0.05), MRI T2 value (p<0.05), and VAS (p<0.01) in the peptide condition were significantly lower than those in control. Although the mechanism of recovery from muscle damage is unclear, our finding suggests that milk peptide intake may be effective for decreasing muscle damage after high-intensity eccentric exercise.