Arachidonic Acid and strength & muscle
What 3 graded rows on arachidonic acid agree on for strength & muscle, and where they differ. Counted side by side, never averaged.
Consensus finder Rows from the Arachidonic Acid page, reviewed Oct 21, 2026 How it decides
What the rows agree on
Each block and row is one graded row from the Arachidonic Acid page, with its PubMed record.
Your question
Arachidonic Acid and strength & muscle
3 rows · 80 peopleMostly no difference: 2 of 3 rows, and most of the people. 1 found an improvement.
- DGrade D× 3
- Rows
- 3
- Trials
- 3
- People
- 80
Where they differ
From the rowsThe best-graded row, grade D, is a randomized trial of 31 people (2007) and found no difference.
The row that found an improvement ran longer (8 weeks) than the 2 rows that found no difference (4 to 7 weeks).
The rows
1 improved · 2 no difference- DGrade DStrength, body composition and anaerobic power during resistance training · No difference
RCT · n 31 · 2007 · Resistance-trained men (15 ARA, 16 placebo)
1 g/day · 50 days
Wingate relative peak power was higher after 50 days and IL-6 was lower at day 25 in the ARA group, but there were no significant differences versus placebo in body composition, strength, anabolic or catabolic hormones, or markers of muscle hypertrophy.
Row on the Arachidonic Acid page · PubMed 18045476 (opens PubMed)
- DGrade DMuscle protein synthesis and anabolic signalling after resistance exercise · No difference
RCT · n 19 · 2018 · Resistance-trained men (at least 1 year of training)
1.5 g/day · 4 weeks, then one resistance-exercise session
Muscle protein synthesis over 4 hours of recovery did not differ from placebo (P = 0.212), and neither did mTOR signalling or the rise in satellite cells; a ribosome-biogenesis marker (45S pre-rRNA) rose at 48 hours only with ARA.
Row on the Arachidonic Acid page · PubMed 29389245 (opens PubMed)
- DGrade DLean mass, strength and power during 8 weeks of strength training · Improved
RCT · n 30 · 2016 · Strength-trained young men (mean age 20)
Not stated in the abstract · 8 weeks
Lean body mass (+2.9%), upper-body strength (+8.7%) and peak power (+12.7%) increased only in the ARA group.
Row on the Arachidonic Acid page · PubMed 27182886 (opens PubMed)