Study Shows Drinking Beetroot Juice Boosts Stamina

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Study Shows Drinking Beetroot Juice Boosts Stamina

http://www.disabled-world.com/fitness/beetroot-juice.php

Drinking beetroot juice (beets) boosts your stamina and could help you exercise

for up to 16% longer. A University of Exeter led-study shows for the first time

how the nitrate contained in beetroot juice leads to a reduction in oxygen

uptake, making exercise less tiring. The study reveals that drinking beetroot

juice reduces oxygen uptake to an extent that cannot be achieved by any other

known means, including training.

Drinking beetroot juice boosts your stamina and could help you exercise for up

to 16% longer. A University of Exeter led-study, published today (Thursday 6

August 2009), shows for the first time how the nitrate contained in beetroot

juice leads to a reduction in oxygen uptake, making exercise less tiring.

The study reveals that drinking beetroot juice reduces oxygen uptake to an

extent that cannot be achieved by any other known means, including training.

The research team believes that the findings could be of great interest to

endurance athletes. They could also be relevant to elderly people or those with

cardiovascular, respiratory or metabolic diseases.

The research team conducted their study with eight men aged between 19 and 38.

They were given 500ml per day of organic beetroot juice for six consecutive days

before completing a series of tests, involving cycling on an exercise bike. On

another occasion, they were given a placebo of blackcurrant cordial for six

consecutive days before completing the same cycling tests.

After drinking beetroot juice the group was able to cycle for an average of

11.25 minutes, which is 92 seconds longer than when they were given the placebo.

This would translate into an approximate 2% reduction in the time taken to cover

a set distance. The group that had consumed the beetroot juice also had lower

resting blood pressure.

The researchers are not yet sure of the exact mechanism that causes the nitrate

in the beetroot juice to boost stamina. However, they suspect it could be a

result of the nitrate turning into nitric oxide in the body, reducing the oxygen

cost of exercise.

The research was carried out by the University of Exeter and Peninsula Medical

School and published in the Journal of Applied Physiology. The research team now

hopes to conduct further studies to try to understand in more detail the effects

of nitrate-rich foods on exercise physiology.

Corresponding author of the study, Professor Andy of the University of

Exeter's School of Sport and Health Sciences, said: " Our study is the first to

show that nitrate-rich food can increase exercise endurance. We were amazed by

the effects of beetroot juice on oxygen uptake because these effects cannot be

achieved by any other known means, including training. I am sure professional

and amateur athletes will be interested in the results of this research. I am

also keen to explore the relevance of the findings to those people who suffer

from poor fitness and may be able to use dietary supplements to help them go

about their daily lives. "

Reference: This study follows research by Barts and the London School of

Medicine and the Peninsula Medical School (published in February 2008 in the

American Heart Association journal Hypertension), which found that beetroot

juice reduces blood pressure.