“Leucic acid?”Here!HICA (alpha-hydroxyisocaproic acid)
Hasn’t appeared in a scanned product yet.
As a supplement
Talk to your doctor or pharmacist.
Roll Call does not check drug interactions or assess personal safety.
A compound derived from the amino acid leucine, sometimes sold as an isolated ingredient in sports supplements.
Why it’s used
Taken by some athletes with an interest in muscle recovery and reducing exercise-related muscle breakdown.
What the evidence says
Human trial data are sparse and small, with mixed results on markers of muscle damage or recovery. There is no NIH ODS fact sheet for this specific compound, and no systematic review establishes a reliable effect.
Where we looked
There was no paper to cite here, so this is the search instead — run it yourself and see what we saw.
- PubMed: 3 records · searched September 2026
"Leucic acid"[Title/Abstract] AND (review[pt] OR "safety assessment"[Title/Abstract] OR "risk assessment"[Title/Abstract] OR toxicology[Title/Abstract] OR toxicity[Title/Abstract] OR characterization[Title/Abstract] OR characterisation[Title/Abstract]) - PubMed: 0 records · searched September 2026
"Leucic acid"[Title/Abstract] AND ("dietary supplements"[MeSH] OR supplementation[Title/Abstract] OR supplement[Title/Abstract] OR supplements[Title/Abstract] OR "oral administration"[Title/Abstract]) AND (randomized controlled trial[pt] OR clinical trial[pt] OR meta-analysis[pt] OR systematic review[pt]) AND humans[MeSH] - PubMed: 26 records · searched September 2026
"Leucic acid"[Title/Abstract]
This says what this database holds under these terms. It is not a finding that no research exists.
Context
Small studies have used gram-level daily amounts alongside exercise protocols, but sample sizes are limited and results are not consistent across trials.
Rumors
HICA increases the rate of muscle protein synthesis.
We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.
What was measured is not yet noted.
Who’s saying this
- us.myprotein.com — we haven’t checked who runs this site yet
HICA is anti-catabolic: it prevents the breakdown of muscle protein.
We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.
What was measured is not yet noted.
Who’s saying this
- Medium — a platform — posts are by its users: publishing platform funded by paid memberships rather than ads
How we know who this is
- “Medium is a home for human stories and ideas.” (their page)
- “Instead of selling ads or selling your data, we’re supported by a growing community of over a million Medium members who believe in our mission.” (their page)
- Medium — a platform — posts are by its users: publishing platform funded by paid memberships rather than ads
High doses of HICA can raise blood ammonia and urea levels.
We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.
What was measured is not yet noted.
Who’s saying this
- SuppleWiki — a publisher: supplement guides and recommendations
How we know who this is
- “SuppleWiki is here to help you find the most beneficial and cost-effective supplements for your personal needs and use them safely and effectively.” (their page)
- SuppleWiki — a publisher: supplement guides and recommendations
HICA (leucic acid) supplementation increases lean muscle mass.
We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.
What was measured is not yet noted.
Who’s saying this
- Supplements In Review — a publisher: supplement reviews; earns affiliate commissions on purchases
How we know who this is
- “Supplements In Review is a team of natural products industry insiders on a mission: “To help you avoid supplement scams, failures and dangers while steering you towards formulas that were made to work.”” (their page)
- “We earn commissions from qualifying purchases made through links on this website.” (their page)
- Supplements In Review — a publisher: supplement reviews; earns affiliate commissions on purchases
HICA reduces delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after training.
We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.
What was measured is not yet noted.
Who’s saying this
- Iron Man Magazine — a publisher: fitness magazine; owned by Denny Kakos
How we know who this is
- “Iron Man Magazine, America’s oldest fitness magazine in circulation, was founded in 1936 by Peary and Mabel Rader of Alliance, Nebraska.” (their page)
- “In January of 2020, Denny Kakos then acquired full ownership of Iron Man Magazine.” (their page)
- Iron Man Magazine — a publisher: fitness magazine; owned by Denny Kakos