A recent study examined the effectiveness of beet juice at increasing blood flow and thereby bolstering athletic performance. The results concluded that there were no observed benefits to this practice. What does this matter to you?
The background to this study is nitric acid. This molecule serves as a vasodilator in the body, relaxing blood vessels which improves oxygen utilization. Nitrates provide the building blocks of nitric acid and it has therefore been thought that by increasing nitrates in the diet, athletes could boost performance. Since beet juice is high in nitrates, drinking some down before a workout should be a benefit.(1) This research calls that assumption into question. Of course, as with any study, this is not necessarily the final word. The researchers only tested healthy individuals and they did not use a very wide ranging set of tests. So it is always possible that the next study will come to a different conclusion.
So that brings me to my point for you. What should we do with this information? If you are an average exerciser my recommendation is, don’t worry about it! I have written before that supplements of any kind (unless they are recommended by your Doctor or Dietitian) should be thought of as a last, little boost of performance. (see: Is This the Most Important Improvement I Can Make?) They can help you get that last 5% or less out of your body. That leaves the other 95% in other categories. For the average gym goer that amounts to a lot of low hanging fruit such as: adding in an extra workout, sleeping an extra hour, cleaning up the diet, cutting alcohol, getting on an actual exercise program, and many more. Changes to those things will bring you far more noticeable improvements than trying to supplement for something like vasodilation.
If you are working on your general health and wellness keep in mind that a lot of the things happening in the exercise and nutrition sciences are not highly important for the general population. New cutting edge science is often used as a marketing tool, but paradoxically, it can also be a distraction from making real progress. When in doubt revisit the basics: get to the gym regularly, eat healthier, reduce indulgences, sleep more, de-stress. These things are guaranteed to have a huge payout for your health – no study required.
Credits:
1) To Beet or not to Beet? Researchers Test Theories of Beet Juice Benefits
photo: Beet It by darwin Bell, © some rights reserved, license
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