Tian Chen, Jiang Qingrui, Han Mengke, Guo Lu, Huang Ruixin, Zhao Li, Mao Shanshan
Beijing Key Laboratory of Sports Performance and Skill Assessment, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China.
School of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100084, China.
Nutrients. 2025 Jun 9;17(12):1958. doi: 10.3390/nu17121958.
Beetroot juice, the most commonly used route of dietary nitrate supplementation, is theorized to enhance physical performance. However, its effects on different aspects of physical performance, different populations, and optimal supplementation strategies remain controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of beetroot juice (nitrate-rich) on physical performance, to compare its effects between professional athletes and non-athletes (healthy individuals), and to determine the optimal supplementation strategy. A systematic search was conducted on the Web of Science, Embase, PubMed, Cochrane Database, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, and CINAHL databases. Reviewers conducted study screening and selection, data extraction, and assessment of methodological quality using the AMSTAR 2 tool. Fifteen meta-analyses were included in this Umbrella Review. A narrative and quantitative synthesis was performed. Standardized mean differences (SMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were reported. (1) Beetroot juice significantly improved muscle strength (SMD = 0.08, < 0.001), but the effect size was negligible. (2) Aerobic Endurance: Beetroot juice significantly improved VO2max (SMD = 0.16, = 0.033) in healthy adults; however, the effect size was negligible. (3) Lactate Tolerance: beetroot juice significantly improved TTE (SMD = 0.25, = 0.034) and YO-YOIR1 (SMD = 0.27, = 0.049) performance in healthy adults, but the effect size was small. (4) Subgroup analyses revealed significant population differences: professional athletes showed significant muscular strength benefits (SMD = 0.27, = 0.007), whereas non-athletes had more pronounced aerobic endurance improvements (SMD = 0.26, < 0.001), but the effect size was small. (5) Nitrate supplementation timing and dose-response analysis revealed that nitrate supplementation, whether administered 2-3 h before exercise or over a prolonged period (≥3 days), produces a significant enhancement in physical performance ( < 0.01). Notably, acute improvement only has a small effect size (SMD = 0.20), while the impact of chronic supplementation is essentially negligible (SMD = 0.13). A dosage of 8.3-16.4 mmol NO (515-1017 mg) showed a significant improvement (SMD = 0.14, = 0.029), although the effect size was negligible. Acute (2-3 h pre-exercise) and chronic (≥3 days) supplementation with beetroot juice to achieve nitrate levels of 8.3-16.4 mmol (515-1017 mg/d) are recommended to enhance physical performance. Beetroot juice shows population-specific effects: proper beetroot juice supplementation improves muscular strength in professional athletes and aerobic endurance in non-athletes. Moreover, appropriate supplementation of beetroot juice can improve the lactate tolerance in healthy adults.
甜菜根汁是膳食硝酸盐补充最常用的途径，理论上可增强身体机能。然而，其对身体机能不同方面、不同人群以及最佳补充策略的影响仍存在争议。本研究的目的是调查甜菜根汁（富含硝酸盐）对身体机能的影响，比较其在职业运动员和非运动员（健康个体）之间的效果，并确定最佳补充策略。在Web of Science、Embase、PubMed、Cochrane数据库、SPORTDiscus、Scopus和CINAHL数据库中进行了系统检索。评审人员使用AMSTAR 2工具进行研究筛选和选择、数据提取以及方法学质量评估。本伞状综述纳入了15项荟萃分析。进行了叙述性和定量综合分析。报告了标准化平均差（SMD）和95%置信区间（CI）。（1）甜菜根汁显著提高了肌肉力量（SMD = 0.08，<0.001），但效应量可忽略不计。（2）有氧耐力：甜菜根汁显著提高了健康成年人的最大摄氧量（SMD = 0.16，= 0.033）；然而，效应量可忽略不计。（3）乳酸耐受性：甜菜根汁显著提高了健康成年人的极限运动时间（SMD = 0.25，= 0.034）和Yo-Yo间歇恢复测试1级（SMD = 0.27，= 0.049）表现，但效应量较小。（4）亚组分析显示存在显著的人群差异：职业运动员表现出显著的肌肉力量益处（SMD = 0.27，= 0.007），而非运动员的有氧耐力改善更为明显（SMD = 0.26，<0.001），但效应量较小。（5）硝酸盐补充时间和剂量反应分析表明，无论在运动前2 - 3小时还是长期（≥3天）补充硝酸盐，都能显著提高身体机能（<0.01）。值得注意的是，急性改善的效应量较小（SMD = 0.20），而长期补充的影响基本可忽略不计（SMD = 0.13）。8.3 - 16.4 mmol NO（515 - 1017 mg）的剂量显示出显著改善（SMD = 0.14，= 0.029），尽管效应量可忽略不计。建议急性（运动前2 - 3小时）和长期（≥3天）补充甜菜根汁以达到8.3 - 16.4 mmol（515 - 1017 mg/d）的硝酸盐水平，以增强身体机能。甜菜根汁显示出人群特异性效应：适当补充甜菜根汁可提高职业运动员的肌肉力量和非运动员的有氧耐力。此外，适当补充甜菜根汁可改善健康成年人的乳酸耐受性。
