We use essential cookies (authentication, your saved goals/stack) by default. With your permission we'll also enable privacy-respecting analytics (Vercel Web Analytics, anonymous load-time metrics) and error-replay diagnostics (Sentry — DOM snapshots only when an error fires) so we can fix bugs faster. Learn more
Brt7.5
Beetroot Research
Likely helpsHigh safety
98 peer-reviewed studies
What the evidence says
Likely helps
Beetroot appears to help in 16 of 19 studies with measurable effects — the evidence leans clearly favourable.
Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 2009–2026 with a typical study size of 37 participants.
Based on 98 studies · 23 meta-analyses · 49 RCTs · 15,465 total participants
Confidence
High
What the studies found
16helped3unclear· 79 more without graded effect data
By outcome
Endurance & exercise performance3-5% improvement in time trial performance · 2-3 hours (acute) · Dietary nitrate improves VO2 economy and time-to-exhaustion · 1-7 days
Likely helps88 studies
Heart & blood pressureReduces systolic blood pressure by 4-5 mmHg via dietary nitrate · 2-4 weeks
Likely helps30 studies
Muscle strength & power
Likely helps19 studies
RecoveryEnhanced blood flow and nutrient delivery · Acute
Mostly mechanism / observational12 studies
Energy & fatigueReduced oxygen cost of exercise · 2-3 hours
Mostly mechanism / observational11 studies
Women's health
Mostly mechanism / observational6 studies
Cognitive function
Mostly mechanism / observational6 studies
Lean body mass & muscle growth
Mostly mechanism / observational5 studies
Glucose & metabolic
Mostly mechanism / observational5 studies
Therapeutic & clinical
Mostly mechanism / observational4 studies
Cholesterol & lipidsReduces systolic blood pressure by 4-5 mmHg via dietary nitrate · 2-4 weeks
Too few graded studies2 studies
Safety profile
Too few graded studies2 studies
Inflammation
Too few graded studies1 study
By the numbers
Pulled from 49 studies with measurable effects
Likely real effects
60%
across studies
People studied
15k
typical study: 37 people
Strongest designs
72
23 pooled, 49 randomised
Showed benefit
79%
15/19 studies
How long studies ran
1–4 weeks
1
1–3 months
2
3+ months
1
Populations Studied
General population7
Adults2
Athletes2
Female athletes2
Active research area
87 studies in the last 5 years · Latest meta-analysis: 2025
200920172026
1Exercise performanceMeta-AnalysisCited 15×n=2,000 · very large study2025
Dietary nitrate supplementation benefits exercise performance across multiple meta-analyses.
Senefeld JW et al. · Sports Medicine (2025)
8.3-16.4 mmol (515-1017 mg) nitrate recommended
Acute and chronic supplementation both effective
More effective under hypoxic conditions or fatigue
3COPD management outcomesMeta-AnalysisCited 2×n=894 · large study2025
This systematic review confirms that the efficacy of dietary polyphenols is significantly composition-specific.
Wu D et al. · Frontiers in immunology (2025)
This systematic review confirms that the efficacy of dietary polyphenols is significantly composition-specific.
Curcumin and salidroside can improve the course of COPD by regulating blood pressure, inflammation, and the coagulation pathway, supporting the hypothesis of "polyphenol targeting of metabolic-inflammatory networks".
However, the possible negative effects of anthocyanins warn against ingredient heterogeneity.
4Muscular enduranceMeta-AnalysisCited 8×n=1,486 · large study2024
BRS administration have a small ergogenic effect on muscular endurance and attenuate the decline in muscular strength in a fatigued state in healthy male individuals.
Evangelista JF et al. · Journal of the American Nutrition Association (2024)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Meta-analyses and subgroup analyses of standardized mean differences (SMD) were performed using a random-effects model.
BRS administration resulted in a positive effect on muscular endurance (SMD: 0.31; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.10 to 0.51; p < 0.01; n = 16 studies).
Of those, 27 studies attended eligibility criteria and composed this systematic review.
5Athletic performance in elite soccer playersSystematic ReviewCited 29×n=1,043 · large study2023
Still, more well-designed research with elite soccer players is needed to improve support and advice regarding the use of dietary supplements for athletic performance enhancement.
Abreu R et al. · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (2023)
Nitrate-rich beetroot concentrate can attenuate performance decrease in the days following matches.
Further investigation with sodium bicarbonate alone is necessary, as supplementation protocols with elite players included other substances.
Finally, the available data does not support yohimbine supplementation or the use of Resurgex Plus® to improve athletic performance in elite soccer players.
6Exercise performance with nitrate ingestionMeta-AnalysisCited 45×n=1,705 · large study2022
To assess the variation in effect size, we used meta-regression models for continuous variables and subgroup analysis for categorical variables.
Silva KVC et al. · Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) (2022)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
To assess the variation in effect size, we used meta-regression models for continuous variables and subgroup analysis for categorical variables.
An inverse dose-response relation between the fraction of inspired oxygen and the effect size (coefficient: -0.045, 95% CI: -0.085, -0.005, P = 0.028) suggests that nitrate was more effective in increasingly hypoxic conditions.
The most effective acute dose was between 5 and 14.9 mmol provided ≥150 min prior to exercise (P <0.001).
7Muscle strength and massSystematic ReviewCited 9×n=1,571 · large study2022
This SUP regime seems to improve muscle efficiency in terms of reduced phosphocreatine and energy costs (P-magnetic resonance spectroscopy) and improved time to exhaustion.
Anderson OK et al. · Journal of strength and conditioning research (2022)
Of the 12 studies, 6 observed an ergogenic effect of SUP compared with placebo.
These findings indicate that muscle strength gains are possible provided the dose, format, frequency, period, and exercise test are appropriate.
Best results were observed with a minimum acute dose of 400 mg of nitrate provided as beetroot juice/shot taken 2-2.5 hours before exercise involving low- and high-intensity muscle contractions.
9Clinical systolic blood pressure in hypertensive individualsMeta-AnalysisCited 8×n=349 · medium study2024
Daily ingestion of 200-800 mg of nitrate from BRJ may reduce clinical systolic BP in hypertensive individuals with no sign of development of tolerance.
Grönroos R et al. · Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases : NMCD (2024)
Daily ingestion of 200-800 mg of nitrate from BRJ may reduce clinical systolic BP in hypertensive individuals with no sign of development of tolerance.
Certainty of evidence is low, and results should be interpreted with caution.
10Swimming performanceMeta-AnalysisCited 2×n=23 · very small study2025
Creatine supplementation demonstrated ergogenic benefits for competitive swimmers, although the evidence supporting the use of this supplement is still limited.
Domínguez R et al. · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (2025)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
This revision included 23 studies, 16 of them (69.6%) qualified as excellent and 7 (30.4%) as good at the methodological level based on the punctuation in the PEDro scale.
The systematic review included 422 swimmers (61.8% male, 38.2% female), with distances assessed ranging from 50 m to 800 m, including studies employing interval procedures.
Creatine showed a significant effect (ES = -0.46; 95% CIs = -0.75 to -0.17, p = 0.002; I2 = 11%) on swimming performance, while the rest of the analyzed supplements did not show significant effects (all p > 0.05).
11Metabolic outcomes in MASLDSystematic Review2025
Further research is needed to validate these effects and ensure their safety in MASLD management.
Jurek JM et al. · Nutrients (2025)
Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has become one of the most prevalent liver diseases, affecting up to 40% of adults and strongly associated with obesity and metabolic dysfunction.
Liver enzymes improved following consumption of WGPs, BJ, sour tea, flaxseed oil, and garlic, and hepatic steatosis was reduced after intake of oranges, WGPs, HFBs, BJ, flaxseed powder, rapeseed oil, and garlic powder.
Conversely, a solely fruit-rich diet (FRD) had negative effects across all outcomes.
12Exercise performance in time trialsMeta-AnalysisCited 4×n=95 · small study2024
CAF+nitrates did not offer further benefits on exercise performance or physiological variables from the isolated intake of CAF and nitrates.
Gilsanz L et al. · Nutrients (2024)
No clear effect
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Could be chance
The meta-analysis revealed that caffeine and nitrates supplementation (CAF+nitrates) did not enhance performance in time trials (TTs) over the CAF alone (g = -0.06; 95% CI = -0.46 to 0.35; p = 0.78) or nitrates alone (g = 0.29; 95% CI = -0.12 to 0.70; p = 0.17).
CAF+nitrates did not affect heart rate during submaximal exercise trials over CAF alone (g = 0.04; 95% CI = -0.31 to 0.40; p = 0.80) or nitrates alone (g = -0.15; 95% CI = -0.50 to 0.20; p = 0.40).
Likewise, CAF+nitrates did not affect oxygen uptake during submaximal exercise trials over CAF alone (g = -0.04; 95% CI = -0.45 to 0.37; p = 0.84) or nitrates alone (g = -0.29; 95% CI = -0.70 to 0.12; p = 0.16).
13Systolic blood pressure reductionMeta-AnalysisCited 101×n=650 · large study2017
Our results demonstrate the blood pressure-lowering effects of beetroot juice and highlight its potential NO3-independent effects.
Bahadoran Z et al. · Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) (2017)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Overall, SBP (-3.55 mm Hg; 95% CI: -4.55, -2.54 mm Hg) and DBP (-1.32 mm Hg; 95% CI: -1.97, -0.68 mm Hg) were significantly lower in the beetroot juice-supplemented groups than in the control groups.
In contrast, a smaller effect size of blood pressures was observed after supplementation with higher NO3 (milligrams per 100 mL beetroot juice).
A weak effect size was observed in a meta-analysis of trials that used NO3-depleted beetroot juice as a placebo compared with other interventions (-3.09 compared with -4.51 mm Hg for SBP and -0.81 compared with -2.01 mm Hg for DBP).
15CKD progression prevention and treatmentSystematic ReviewCited 7×2024
These results suggest that bioactive compounds of plant-based foods and medicinal plants have promising effects in terms of preventing or treating CKD progression and appear to improve inflammation and antioxidant capacity and support cardiovascular benefits and renoprotective effects; however, it is recommended that further studies be carried out.
Future studies are required to provide insight on how supplementation regimen and population impact the effects of dietary nitrate for enhancing cycling sprint performance.
Tan R et al. · Nutrients (2024)
Large benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
A random effects model was performed on six studies and showed that dietary nitrate had significant effects on time-to-peak power (SMD: -0.66, 95% CI: -1.127 to -0.192, p = 0.006) but not on mean power, peak power, or minimum power.
Subgroup analysis revealed that an acute low nitrate dose improved time-to-peak power (SMD: -0.977, 95% CI: -1.524 to -0.430, p < 0.001) but not after a multiday moderate nitrate dose (SMD: -0.177, 95% CI: -0.619 to -0.264, p = 0.431).
These data suggest that acute nitrate supplementation can benefit time-to-peak power during 30-s cycling sprints, but due to the limited availability of data and heterogeneity in methodology, these results should be interpreted with caution.
This meta-analysis study suggests that BR or nitrate supplements cannot efficiently ameliorate body composition indices regardless of supplement dosage, trial duration and athletic status.
Afrisham R et al. · The British journal of nutrition (2023)
Subgroup analyses based on trial duration, BR or nitrate dose, study design, baseline BMI and athletic status (athlete v. non-athlete) demonstrated similar results.
Certainty of evidence across outcomes ranged from low to moderate.
This meta-analysis study suggests that BR or nitrate supplements cannot efficiently ameliorate body composition indices regardless of supplement dosage, trial duration and athletic status.
20Vascular function/endothelial functionMeta-AnalysisCited 118×n=246 · medium study2016
Inorganic nitrate and beetroot supplementation was associated with beneficial effects on EF.
Lara J et al. · European journal of nutrition (2016)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
Inorganic nitrate and beetroot consumption was associated with an improvement in vascular function (SMD 0.36; 95 % CI 0.16, 0.56; P < 0.001).
The effect on EF was significantly associated with the dose of inorganic nitrate (β = 0.04, SE = 0.01, P < 0.001), age (β = -0.01, SE = 0.004, P = 0.02), baseline BMI (β = -0.04, SE = 0.02, P = 0.05) and systolic BP (β = -0.01, SE = 0.005, P = 0.02).
Inorganic nitrate and beetroot supplementation was associated with beneficial effects on EF.