Nutritional Tips for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Patients

• Creatine is a popular supplement, especially among athletes because it helps enhance their endurance and strength. It can help improve the performance of the muscles and help them recover fast from damage or an injury. It also provides the muscular cells energy and activates the stem cells in the muscles. In a clinical trial conducted with the participation of BMD and DMD patients who took 3g of creatine a day for 3 months, the time it took for the patients to suffer from fatigue almost doubled.
• Glutamine is an amino acid that helps protect the muscles. It can also help decrease protein degradation in Duchenne patients and serves as an energy source for the cells. Apart from that, glutamine also plays a very important role in protein synthesis by providing nitrogen.
• Coenzyme Q10 is an antioxidant that aids in the production of cellular energy. According to some studies on humans and animals, deficiency in Coenzyme Q10 may lead to the development of muscular dystrophy. Also, in a clinical trial involving 27 patients with muscular dystrophy, the intake of 100 mg of CoQ10 on a daily basis for 3 months has improved heart parameters as compared to the placebo.