Supplement Overview

• Ribose is a pentose (5 carbon sugar) that is naturally found in the diet. It provides the backbone of DNA, RNA and adenine nucleotides (ATP, ADP and AMP).
• The chemical production of ribose has become possible and this product is now found in a number of commercial supplements. It is often found in conjunction with creatine in these products.
• The pentose phosphate pathway produces a chemical called PRPP, which is then used in the synthesis or salvaging of ATP in the muscle cell. It is proposed that ribose supplementation will bypass the limiting factors in this pathway to increase PRPP synthesis, and enhance the restoration of ATP levels in the cell if these are reduced by exercise.
• Clinical studies of patients with ischaemic heart disease who have low PRPP levels report that ribose supplementation increases PRPP, and improves cardiac function and exercise tolerance. This is clearly a situation limited by PRPP.
• It has been suggested that repeated sprints of high-intensity exercise cause a reduction in the ATP and adenine nucleotide pool in the muscle cell, and that ribose supplementation may be effective in enhancing de novo synthesis and recycling of these nucleotides, thus enhancing the recovery of the muscle ATP content.
• Supplementation protocols in recent studies typically involve daily doses of 10-20 g of ribose, and have targeted athletes undertaking intermittent high-intensity exercise programs (weight training, interval training).
• Several studies that have appeared in abstract form from conference presentations have reported favourable results following ribose supplementation in heavily training athletes. However, the brief form of these reports does not provide sufficient information to judge the quality of the study and the interpretation of results. To date, none of these studies have appeared in full publication in peer-reviewed literature, although in many cases, several years have passed since the original presentation.
• The studies that have published in full in peer-reviewed journals have failed to find a significant or consistent performance improvement in heavily training athletes who consumed ribose supplements, compared with a placebo trial or group.
• In summary, at the present time there is no clear evidence to support benefits from ribose supplementation in well-trained athletes.

Concerns Associated with Supplement Use

• The absence of full reports from ribose supplementation studies prevents any discussion of reported side-effects. One study has reported that 14 d of supplementation failed to produce any changes in haemotological and liver markers.
• Ribose supplementation is expensive. At a recommended price of $70 for 100 g supply, a daily does of 10-20 grams of ribose would cost $50-100 per week.

Last Updated 3/1/07

This fact sheet has been prepared by the AIS Sports Nutrition as part of the AIS Sports Supplement Program. The AIS Sports Supplement Program has been designed for the specific needs of AIS athletes. It is recommended that other athletes and groups seek independent advice before using any supplement. © Australian Sports Commission 2007