Plain-language summary
A landmark meta-analysis pooling more than forty controlled trials of β-alanine supplementation to quantify its effect on exercise capacity and performance. The pooled estimate is a small-to-moderate ergogenic benefit, most pronounced for continuous and intermittent efforts in the one-to-four-minute window where intramuscular acidosis is the dominant fatigue driver — the exact place carnosine's pH-buffering chemistry should matter most.
Key takeaways
- ›Strongest performance benefit lands on 1–4 minute efforts.
- ›Effect size is consistent across trained and recreational athletes.
- ›Largest evidence synthesis to date for the carnosine-precursor pathway.
About this summary
The summary and key takeaways above are written by our editorial team in plain language for general readers. They are not the original abstract. For the authors' own wording, methodology, statistics, and full reference list, follow the source link to the published record.