Supplement
Nitrate is a compound found in beetroot and leafy greens that the body converts into nitric oxide, a molecule that helps blood vessels relax and muscles use oxygen efficiently. People mostly look at it for endurance exercise, where the evidence is strong, and studies found aerobic exercise measures improved. Blood lactate during exercise showed no clear difference, though, and the aerobic finding itself came from a small group of about 20 people.
Sources: PMID 27600147
- Updated
- How we grade
- 29 studies cited
- Best evidence
- Grade B
- Conditions studied
- 15
- Outcomes
- 67
- Graded outcomes
- 0841
Evidence by condition
- Strong
- Moderate
- Limited
- Very limited
General Cardiovascular Health
- Blood Pressure: improves
- Plasma Nitrate: improves
- Vascular Function: improves
Anaerobic Exercise Performance
- Exercise Capacity: improves
- Strength: improves
- Peak power output (PPO): improves
Aerobic Exercise Performance
- Aerobic Exercise Metrics: improves
- Blood Lactate (Exercise)
- Exercise Capacity: improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aerobic Exercise Metrics Small Improvement | Improves (the measure goes up) | Small effect | 20 people | |||
| Blood Lactate (Exercise) No effect | NoneNo effect | 848 people | ||||
| Exercise Capacity | Improves (the measure goes up) | 5 studies | 604 people | |||
Studies that measured exercise capacity
| ||||||
| Heart Rate | Improves (the measure goes down) | 2 studies | 11 people | |||
Studies that measured heart rate | ||||||
| Oxygen Cost of Exercise | Improves (the measure goes up) | 2 studies | 1,563 people | |||
Studies that measured oxygen cost of exercise | ||||||
| Peak power output (PPO) | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 383 people | |||
| Power Output | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 1,062 people | |||
| Rating of Perceived Exertion | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 974 people | |||
| Maximal isometric voluntary contraction | Improves (the measure goes up) | 383 people | ||||
| Oxygen Uptake | Improves (the measure goes up) | 286 people | ||||
Muscle Size Strength
- Jump Height: improves
- Strength: improves
- Peak power output (PPO): improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jump Height Small Increase | Improves (the measure goes up) | Small effect | 75 people | |||
| Strength | Improves (the measure goes up) | 3 studies | 73 people | |||
Studies that measured strength
| ||||||
| Peak power output (PPO) | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 268 people | |||
Studies that measured peak power output (ppo) | ||||||
| Power Output | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 8 people | |||
| Sprint Performance Metrics | Improves (the measure goes up) | 67 people | ||||
Running Performance
- Aerobic Exercise Metrics: improves
- Heart Rate: improves
- Oxygen Cost of Exercise: improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aerobic Exercise Metrics Small Improvement | Improves (the measure goes up) | Small effect | 20 people | |||
| Heart Rate | Improves (the measure goes down) | 2 studies | 11 people | |||
Studies that measured heart rate | ||||||
| Oxygen Cost of Exercise | Improves (the measure goes up) | 2 studies | 9 people | |||
Studies that measured oxygen cost of exercise | ||||||
| Rating of Perceived Exertion | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 22 people | |||
Studies that measured rating of perceived exertion | ||||||
Muscle Size & Strength
- Jump Height: improves
- Strength: improves
- Peak power output (PPO): improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jump Height Small Increase | Improves (the measure goes up) | Small effect | 75 people | |||
| Strength | Improves (the measure goes up) | 3 studies | 73 people | |||
Studies that measured strength
| ||||||
| Peak power output (PPO) | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 268 people | |||
Studies that measured peak power output (ppo) | ||||||
| Power Output | Improves (the measure goes up) | 1 study | 8 people | |||
| Sprint Performance Metrics | Improves (the measure goes up) | 67 people | ||||
Type 2 Diabetes
- Blood Pressure: improves
- Plasma Nitrate: improves
- Vascular Function: improves
Cognitive Improvement
- Blood Pressure: improves
- Oxygen Cost of Exercise: improves
- Cognitive Decline: improves
Healthy Muscle Aging
- Blood Pressure: improves
- Oxygen Cost of Exercise: improves
- Cognitive Decline: improves
General Athletic Performance
- Aerobic Exercise Metrics: improves
- Blood Pressure: improves
- Exercise Performance During Hypoxia: improves
Heart Failure
- Exercise Capacity: improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise Capacity | Improves (the measure goes up) | 5 studies | 1,160 people |
High-Altitude Performance
- Exercise Performance During Hypoxia: improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise Performance During Hypoxia | Improves (the measure goes up) | 2 studies | 15 people |
Metabolic Health
- Exercise Performance During Hypoxia: improves
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise Performance During Hypoxia | Improves (the measure goes up) | 2 studies | 9 people |
Key findings
- Blood PressureImproves (the measure goes down)
- Exercise CapacityImproves (the measure goes up)
- Aerobic Exercise MetricsImproves (the measure goes up)
Shop the evidence-backed picks
Third-party tested Nitrate products, in the forms the graded studies used where we can match them.
- Grade B
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Studies cited
29 studies from PubMed
- Dietary nitrate improves muscle but not cerebral oxygenation status during exercise in hypoxia
- Dietary nitrate reduces muscle metabolic perturbation and improves exercise tolerance in hypoxia
- Dietary nitrate supplementation reduces the O2 cost of walking and running: a placebo-controlled study
- Dietary nitrate supplementation improves team sport-specific intense intermittent exercise performance
- Influence of dietary nitrate supplementation on human skeletal muscle metabolism and force production during maximum voluntary contractions
- Effect of beetroot juice on lowering blood pressure in free-living, disease-free adults: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial
- Absence of an effect of high nitrate intake from beetroot juice on blood pressure in treated hypertensive individuals: a randomized controlled trial
- Effect of inorganic nitrate supplementation on blood pressure in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis
- Effects of short-term dietary nitrate supplementation on blood pressure, O2 uptake kinetics, and muscle and cognitive function in older adults
- Nitrate Derived From Beetroot Juice Lowers Blood Pressure in Patients With Arterial Hypertension: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- Whole beetroot consumption acutely improves running performance
- The effects of dietary nitrate supplementation on endurance exercise performance and cardiorespiratory measures in healthy adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- The Effect of Dietary Nitrate Supplementation on Endurance Exercise Performance in Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- Nitrate supplementation improves physical performance specifically in non-athletes during prolonged open-ended tests: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Factors that Moderate the Effect of Nitrate Ingestion on Exercise Performance in Adults: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analyses and Meta-Regressions.
- The Effect of Dietary Nitrate on the Contractile Properties of Human Skeletal Muscle: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- Effect of dietary nitrate on blood pressure, endothelial function, and insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetes
- Pharmacokinetic study of amaranth extract in healthy humans: A randomized trial
- Plasma nitrate, dietary nitrate, blood pressure, and vascular health biomarkers: a GRADE-Assessed systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
- Regulatory effect of dietary nitrate on blood pressure: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
- Effect of dietary nitrate on human muscle power: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis.
- Does Nitrate Supplementation Improve Muscle Strength, Power, and Sprint Performance in Females? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- Effects of Dietary Nitrate Supplementation on Back Squat and Bench Press Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- The Effect of Dietary Nitrate Supplementation on Isokinetic Torque in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
- Dietary nitrate supplementation to enhance exercise capacity in patients with COPD: Evidence from a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and a network pharmacological analysis.
- Evaluating the impact of short-term nitrate-rich dietary supplementation on endothelial function in COPD: A randomized crossover study.
- Efficacy of dietary nitrate-rich beetroot juice supplementation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Efficacy and safety of nitrate supplementation on exercise tolerance in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Effect of nitrate treatment on functional capacity and exercise time in patients with heart failure: a systematic review and meta-analysis.