During the citric acid cycle, arginine is broken down to obtain ornithine. It helps increase muscle mass and reduce fat amount, especially when combined with arginine and carnitine amino acids.
Ornithine is necessary for the production of citrulline, proline, and glutamic acid amino acids, which help meet the energy needs of cells.
Research has shown that ornithine increases insulin and growth hormones necessary for muscle development and maintenance.
Ornithine may help prevent muscle loss, a natural consequence of aging. As the body ages, it cannot synthesize proteins and produce muscles as quickly as before, and muscle mass begins to decrease. Ornithine can slow muscle loss by helping increase growth hormone.
While arginine and ornithine are involved in muscle development and preservation, ornithine is twice as powerful as arginine in stimulating growth hormone production.
Ornithine helps eliminate toxic ammonia from the liver. In one study, the group given ornithine aspartate for 2 weeks showed significant improvements in blood tests and liver functions compared to the group given a placebo.
Research shows that ornithine also helps repair tissue damage. It was observed that those who took 10g of ornithine alpha-ketoglutarate had shorter hospital stays, and surgical wounds, infections, burns, cancer, and traumas healed faster.
Ornithine is one of the amino acids produced by the body.
