Close
Field Notes

The Chemistry Behind Common Workout Supplements

November 11, 2020

In the fitness community, novice and expert athletes alike, are continually searching for supplements that will give an athletic edge in their workouts. There are many athletes, especially newer and younger ones, that are ingesting supplements without actually understanding what the supplements are doing to their bodies. Since workout supplements are not regulated by the US FDA, manufacturers are able to put whatever they want into their supplements – even ingredients that toe the line between legal and illegal, including some ingredients that are amphetamine derivatives. These manufacturers hide these ingredients in what they call “proprietary blends”. So that you can be informed, here are the three most common and generally accepted to be safe workout supplements:

1)    Creatine

2)    Caffeine

3)    Beta-Alanine

Additionally, these are two ingredients in popular supplements today that you should NOT be taking:

1)    DMAA

2)    DMHA

This is an example of a nutrition label of a pre-workout supplement. Always look at the supplement facts to see what ingredients your supplement contains!

Supplements Generally Accepted to be Safe

 

Creatine

Creatine is one of the most popular supplements used by athletes looking to build lean muscle mass, maximize athletic performance, and increase strength. Typically, creatine is in the form of creatine monohydrate, a nitrogen-containing compound that can be obtained in the food we eat – from sources like meat and fish – or formed endogenously (or inside the body), from three specific amino acids: glycine, arginine, and methionine.

Creatine helps in the production and recycling of ATP. Adenosine Triphosphate, or ATP,  is an organic compound responsible for being the main source of energy for essentially all bodily processes. Whether you’re running, lifting weights, or even carrying groceries inside, your body is consistently using ATP to produce energy. After your body uses ATP for energy, the chemical bi-product produced is adenosine diphosphate, or ADP. Your body then begins the process of recycling ADP back into ATP.

With the help of creatine, ADP recycling is exponentially increased, improving muscular endurance and power. There have been over 300 scientific studies highlighting the effectiveness of creatine. In fact, over 70% of these studies show statistically significant results in muscle growth and performance while taking creatine over an 8-week period of time. In the fitness world, fitness experts advise taking 20mg of creatine monohydrate for about 1 week to saturate your cells with creatine. From there, you can reduce your intake to 5mg per day. Although supplementing with creatine doesn’t guarantee muscle growth and athletic improvement, it can certainly help with overall energy production in the body, if you supplement correctly. A potential drawback to creatine is that it has been shown to be hard on kidneys, especially in people with pre-existing conditions.  However, as always, you should consult your physician before starting new supplements. If you consult with your physician and supplement correctly, you can gain the benefits of using creatine in your workouts!

 

Caffeine

Ahh, caffeine – a familiar word to pretty much every student on a college campus (and probably to high school students). Caffeine takes many forms, whether you imbibe yours with coffee or espressos, or you take yours in a pill form. Caffeine is the world’s most popular central nervous system stimulant and performance-enhancing supplements. It has become such a prolific supplement that it seems the world runs on caffeine.

In fact, supplementing with caffeine has been scientifically proven to have significant ergogenic effects on aerobic and anaerobic activities (think endurance and sprinting, respectively).

Caffeine is able to give you that desired jolt of energy by activating adenosine receptors in your brain. Consequently, dopamine floods your brain and causes increased neuron firing. The pituitary gland senses this activity and stimulates your flight-or-fight response, causing your body to release adrenaline. This chemical cascade is why caffeine makes you feel awake and energized. Caffeine acts as a muscle and chemical stimulant as well as a brain stimulant.

While working out, caffeine can empower your body to push through even the hardest workouts, while keeping you focused on getting your next weightlifting or running personal record. Most workout supplements will have 120 – 180mg of caffeine per serving. Taking caffeine in the appropriate amounts can push you through your workout. However, since workout supplements are not FDA regulated, some supplements will include over 500mg of caffeine, claiming to give you the best workout of your life. However, healthy adults should not consume more than 400mg of caffeine per day – actually, it’s quite unsafe and unhealthy to consume more. So, when you go to take your next workout supplement, make sure to check the nutrition label for how much caffeine it includes and be sure that taking it doesn’t interfere with your morning cup of coffee or tea!

 

Beta-Alanine

If you use workout supplements, especially pre-workout supplements, you’ve most likely heard of Beta-Alanine. Beta-Alanine is a non-essential amino acid that is produced naturally in the body. In the body, Beta-Alanine aids in the production of carnosine. Carnosine is important for many normal body functions including the proper function and development of your muscles, heart, liver, kidneys, brain, and other organs. The exercise world focuses on carnosine’s role in muscle endurance in high-intensity exercises, such as weightlifting.

Since Beta-Alanine helps in the production of carnosine, supplements typically include Beta-Alanine in pre-workouts geared for weightlifting or other high impact exercise activities. Because carnosine is specifically linked to muscle endurance, it is thought to help create longer weightlifting workouts, in turn leading athletes to true muscle exhaustion, consequently leading to muscle growth.

Although science generally supports Beta-Alanine’s support in the creation of carnosine, there is still quite a bit of research that needs to be undertaken to verify the efficacy of the supplement. In general, the recommended effective and safe dose for Beta-Alanine is around 3-6 grams. Taking more is not advised as the safety effects of taking more have not been proved to be more effective nor safe. Interested readers should be cautious, however, when taking this supplement. Beta-Alanine can cause a tingling sensation in their body, called paresthesia. This tingling sensation stems from central nervous system stimulation and muscle stimulation. Though completely harmless, people that are sensitive to these kinds of body effects should either reconsider taking Beta-Alanine or take it in lower doses to assess tolerance.

In general, Beta-Alanine is a great, generally safe supplement to use in sports and weightlifting. As always, consulting your physician is always smart before starting any new supplement. However, users in good health are generally safe and benefit from taking Beta-Alanine in supplementing for their workouts.

Supplements you should not be taking:

 

DMAA

1,3 Dimethylamylamine (a.k.a. 1,3-DMAA or DMAA) is a substance made synthetically in laboratories. Surprising, it was originally used as a nasal decongestant in medicines from around the 1960s. Today, 1,3-DMAA is sold as a dietary supplement for a myriad of reasons including ADHD, weight loss, and improving athletic performance, as DMAA is classified as a stimulant. Many athletes take 1,3-DMAA to improve performance, without understanding the effects on the body.

However, it was determined that DMAA is chemically too close to drugs and controlled substances like certain amphetamines – it even causes failures on drug tests for drug-tested athletes. Consequently, DMAA was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited substances list in 2010. Its use has been linked to several reports of serious, life-threatening side effects. You definitely should stay away from any workout supplement that includes this in their proprietary blend or ingredient list!

 

DMHA

Like DMAA, 1,5-Dimethylhexylamine (DMHA) was originally used as a drug for nasal congestion, similar to drugs such as pseudoephedrine, etc. Today, DMHA is included as an ingredient in dietary supplement products to supposedly boost workout performance or for weight loss. DMHA is very close to DMAA, but unlike DMAA, DMHA is currently not illegal. However, because of its close relation with DMAA and other amphetamines and controlled substances, many professional athletic communities actively advise against using any supplement with DMHA (i.e. NCAA for US college sports). While DMAA is a very potent stimulant that will definitely make even the hardest workouts feel ‘easy’, there are no studies to show the safety of DMAA, and there have even been reports of severe side effects from ingesting DMAA. If you see a workout supplement that includes DMAA, you should definitely not take it!

 

NSF label

NSF label
When in doubt, check for the NSF label!

If you doubt your ability to check a supplement’s ingredient list, it’s always a good idea to check if the product has an NSF label. NSF is the National Sanitation Foundation which was established to standardize food safety requirements. This organization is composed of chemists, biologists, nutrition experts, doctors, and more, who test and validate sports supplements (among other products) for their safety and efficacy. In fact, the U.S. NCAA mandates that athletes only take workout supplements with the NSF label, as this ensures the product does not contain any banned or harmful substances. If you choose a product that has the NSF label, you can be sure that the supplement is scientifically proven to be effective, generally accepted to be safe to use, and will not have any banned substances of any kind.

 

Ask your physician and go crush your workout

Now that you are aware of the more popular “generally accepted to be safe” supplements, as well as the supplements that you shouldn’t take, I hope that you are more informed when it comes to decisions about the supplements you take. In general, you should not begin taking new supplements until you have consulted with your physician. This article is by no means seeking to give advice; this article only seeks to bring awareness. Now get out there, be safe with your supplements, and crush your next workout!

 

Notice: Pictures featured in this article are not to be considered an endorsement of that specific product.

 

Sources:

Kreider, R. (2003, February). Effects of creatine supplementation on performance and training adaptations. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12701815/

Grgic, J., Trexler, E., Lazinica, B., & Pedisic, Z. (2018, March 5). Effects of caffeine intake on muscle strength and power: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5839013/

Ratini, M. (2019, January 30). Beta-Alanine: Uses and Risks. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://www.webmd.com/vitamins-and-supplements/beta-alanine-uses-and-risks

NIH. (2019). Paresthesia Information Page. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/All-Disorders/Paresthesia-Information-Page

WebMD. (2018). 1,3-Dmaa: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Dosage, and Warning. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1258/1-3-dmaa

WebMD. (2018). Dimethylhexylamine (Dmha): Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Dosage, and Warning. Retrieved November 01, 2020, from https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1538/dimethylhexylamine-dmha

0Likes
About Author

Zack is a 4th year Computer Science student at Georgia Tech. He specializes in cybersecurity and computational theory. In his free time, Zack likes to stay in shape, spend time with friends, and read about the latest frightening cyber threats.

You May Also Like

Field Notes
How I Applied To Grad School (and How You Can Too)!
Field Notes, Story Time, today i learned (til)
Collaboration is Key!
Hanks Robbed
Field Notes, today i learned (til), vintage science
The Art of Getting Robbed with Gringo Perdido
Field Notes, today i learned (til)
Navigating Transition in Higher Education – An Analysis of Transfer Students at Tech

Your journey starts here! Let’s talk!

ThemeRex © 2026. All rights reserved.
  Timothy Durham was convicted of rape when a test showed his DNA genotype matched the DNA recovered from the crime scene. Eye witnesses testified that Durham was in a different state at the time of the incident, but he wasn’t exonerated from his 3000 year sentence until follow up DNA analysis showed that the preliminary forensic analysis used in the trial was misinterpreted (Thomas et al.). DNA testing serves an invaluable part in our criminal justice system, but it comes with complications and bias that can lead to wrongful convictions and misinformed juries.  

Background:

Forensic genetics aims to identify the origin of a biological sample. It can be traced back to Karl Landsteiner who discovered human ABO blood groups. With blood groups, suspects could be eliminated based on their blood type. For example, if a suspect had type A blood and there was type B blood left at the scene by the perpetrator, the investigators could rule out the suspect. Unfortunately, the reverse didn’t work. If the suspect and perpetrator both had the same blood type, it can’t be concluded that the suspect was guilty. Blood identifiers evolved into 8 distinct categories which improved the ability to eliminate suspects, but could only conclude that (if the system matched) it might be the perpetrator or this person might be related to the perpetrator (Jobling and Gill). The field evolved in the 1980s with the discovery of Minisatellites, lines of repetitive DNA that don’t encode proteins. Minisatellite patterns in DNA create what we know today as the DNA fingerprint, and it has a much higher accuracy rate than previous methods (Augustyn et al.). Around the same time, a breakthrough for victims of sexual assault was discovered. In the case of assault, bodily fluids of both the victim and the assaulter can get mixed. A process called differential lysis was created which could selectively increase the concentration of sperm in a fluid sample thereby allowing for accurate DNA testing (Jobling and Gill). Forensics evolved to use single-locus probe testing after several years because of its ease of interpretation. It looked at specific minisatellites that had high variability between subjects. This was the first DNA-based method to be used in a criminal investigation. Two murder homicides from several years apart were connected using DNA evidence. The evidence was then used to exonerate an innocent man, and the guilty party was found when he tried to evade mandatory DNA testing for all men in the small town. His guilt was then reinforced when the DNA profiles matched, and he gave a confession (Jobling and Gill). Finding DNA at a crime scene doesn’t guarantee that you’ll find a murderer. There are issues with non-pure samples and limited samples that make DNA work difficult, and accreditation of facilities and new techniques and take time (Jobling and Gill).  

Subjectivity of DNA Interpretation:

In a 2009 publication, the National Academy of Science discusses the possibility for subjective influence in lab based forensics. The interpretation bias happens in complex cases where, for example, there could be a mixture of DNA. A study published in 2011 looked specifically at this issue. A gang rape happened in Georgia, and the mixture in DNA from the case was used to prosecute one suspect after another suspect took a plea bargain to testify against him. With DNA mixtures, there are three possible conclusions: suspect excluded, suspect cannot be excluded, and inconclusive. If the suspect is excluded, it means that there’s little to no possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. If the suspect cannot be excluded, it means that there’s a possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. In the trial, the DNA examiners who knew the context of the case concluded that the suspect being prosecuted could not be excluded. The 2011 study gave the DNA evidence from this case and the DNA profiles of the suspects to 17 forensic examiners. These examiners had no context of the case, and they all worked independently. Of the 17, only 1 came to the same conclusion (suspect cannot be excluded) as the examiners who knew the context of the case. Twelve of the 17 concluded that the suspect who was prosecuted and convicted had no relation to the DNA found in the sample. Not only does this show that subjectivity occurs due to the context of the case, but the 17 examiners came up with different findings based on their past experiences meaning that not all DNA analysis is objective. Some organizations like the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods say that quantitative statistical evidence should be presented with every categorical conclusion, but the US doesn’t require this (Dror and Hampikian).

False Positives:

There are two categories that cause wrongful identification in a DNA report: coincidental matches and false positives. Coincidental matches are DNA matches between two unrelated people. The probability of these matches is about 1 to 500,000 for white individuals and about 1 to 350,000 for black individuals. This small probability of coincidental matches makes people feel confident in DNA evidence. False positives, on the other hand, are matches between DNA and test DNA that result from issues in the forensics lab. There have been multiple cases of forensics labs accidentally switching victim and suspected rapist DNA which lead to convictions that were later overturned when the lab realized the error. There are also cases of misreading or misunderstanding a sample. In a case from 1993, a man was convicted of rape because someone interpreted a mixed sample of victim and perpetrator DNA as an individual sample. The conviction was again overturned. To prevent false convictions, retesting DNA is allowed, but it’s not an efficient solution. Many people are pushing for statistical information on the probability of false positives, so that the jurors can make accurate judgements based on DNA evidence (Thomas et al.).  

Conclusion:

DNA analysis is a useful tool for the criminal justice system, but subjectivity can be an issue in forensic testing. To combat wrongful convictions, there are organizations like The Innocence Project who use DNA testing to free the innocent, but reformed forensic testing standards should be put in place to prevent subjectivity and to ensure juries are correctly informed during trials. https://www.innocenceproject.org/    

Citation:

Augustyn , Adam, et al. “DNA Finerprinting.” Encyclopedia Britannica , 26 Apr. 2018, www.britannica.com/science/DNA-fingerprinting#ref153186. Dror, Itiel E., and Greg Hampikian. “Subjectivity and Bias in Forensic DNA Mixture Interpretation.” Science & Justice, vol. 51, no. 4, 2011, pp. 204–208., doi:10.1016/j.scijus.2011.08.004. Jobling, Mark A., and Peter Gill. “Encoded Evidence: DNA in Forensic Analysis.” Nature Reviews: Genetics, vol. 5, no. 10, Oct. 2004, pp. 739–751., doi:10.1038/nrg1455. Thompson, William C, et al. “How the Probability of a False Positive Affects the Value of DNA Evidence.” Journal of Forensic Sciences, vol. 48, no. 1, Jan. 2003, pp. 1–8., doi:10.1520/jfs2001171.