Synbiotic supplementation effects on muscle damage and inflammation in professional futsal players in a randomized clinical trial

Professional futsal players experience significant muscle injury, inflammation, and body composition alterations due to intense training. This 12-week double-blind, randomized clinical trial investigated the efficacy of synbiotic supplementation in 25 players assigned to either a synbiotic group (n = 13) receiving 10⁹ CFU of seven probiotic strains plus 375 mg fructooligosaccharides, or a placebo group (n = 12). Participants underwent a standardized simulated match protocol before blood sampling at baseline and post-intervention. Outcomes included muscle injury markers (CK, LDH, AST), inflammatory markers (IL-6, TNF-α, hs-CRP), body composition, and dietary intake. Synbiotic supplementation significantly reduced levels of key muscle injury markers (CK, p < 0.001; AST, p = 0.01) and inflammatory markers (TNF-α, p < 0.001; hs-CRP, p < 0.001) compared to placebo. It also significantly improved body composition by reducing fat mass and body fat percentage (both p = 0.01). Changes in LDH and IL-6 were not statistically significant. Dietary intake remained stable. Synbiotic supplementation significantly attenuated post-exercise increases in several markers of muscle damage (CK, AST) and inflammation (TNF-α, hs-CRP) and improving body composition in professional futsal players under controlled high-intensity conditions. Clinical Trial Registration: https://www.irct.ir, identifier: IRCT20100123003140N23 (https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir/trial/74992).