Running head: BEETROOT JUICE

Kimberly Evans
Ergogenic Aids: Beetroot Juice
Nutrition 3020
Weber State University
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Abstract

Edging out your competition is the end goal to any race or performance in the world of

sports. Many athletes have turned to ergogenic aids and substances to help give them a leg up

on their top competitor. Unfortunately, many athletes have been discovered to engage in illegal

abuse of substances such as anabolic steroids and blood doping. However, there is an ergogenic

aid that is showing great potential to increase distances ran with less fatigue and increased

peak power. This substance is a vegetable and it’s commonly called the “beet”. Beets are found

to contain high concentrations of inorganic nitrate (NO3-) which is being shown as a precursor

to nitric oxide (NO). This is important because NO is a potent vasodilator. Vasodilators cause

the blood vessels to expand to allow for increased gas exchange of oxygen to working muscles.

More oxygen-rich blood being delivered can lead to improved physical performance in athletes.

Beet juice and beet juice supplements are also showing to improve mitochondrial efficiency

(Dominguez & Cuenca, 2017). The mitochondria are the cell’s “power house” for energy

production. Improving the efficiency of energy being created can hopefully translate into faster

times, bigger lifts and less time to fatigue.

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Introduction

When the difference between a gold and silver medal is determined by tenths or

hundredths of a second, any natural substance that can give an athlete an edge over the

competition is going to be considered. An improvement of just 0.06% in one’s performance is

now showing to be enough to make a difference to edge out the top competition (Dominguez,

2017). This is where beetroot juice and beetroot juice supplements come into play. With

promises for improved blood flow to working muscles and increasing their capacity for more

work with less energy expenditure, it’s no wonder why beet juice is becoming more popular

among endurance and high-intensity athletes alike. One aspect that makes beetroot juice and

beetroot juice supplements appealing is the fact that it’s all natural. Many athletes have fallen

into the trap of taking performance-enhancing substances only to be found out years later

having all their medals and trophies stripped away. It would be hard to consider drinking a

pureed vegetable as “doping” or “cheating” because beet juice is just that, beets blended in a

blender to make juice.

What is Beetroot Juice?

To understand what beet juice is, it is first important to know where it comes from.

Beetroot comes from the taproot region of a beet plant. A taproot is the dominant, central root

from which all other roots grow laterally. The beet has many names. It is typically known as the

“beet” in North America, but it can also be called, “table beet”, “garden beet”, “red beet”, or

“golden beet” (Wikipedia, N.D.). One cup of raw beetroot juice contains 58 calories, 13 grams of

carbohydrates, that includes 9 grams of sugar and 4 grams of fiber. One cup also contains 2

grams of protein. (Ware, 2017). Making your own homemade beet juice is not hard and only

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requires minimal ingredients. In order to make your own beet juice you should select 2-4 beets

that still have the stems. The stem should be similar to celery and be beet-red in color. You

need to wash your beets thoroughly and peel the beets as the peels can have a bitter taste. The

stems should be removed, and the beets cut up into small chunks and tossed in a blender. You

can add sweetness to your beet juice by blending it with carrots, lemon, or an apple (Weinblatt,

2017). Knowing how to make your own beet juice is one thing but knowing why you should

drink it is another.

Common Usage and Cost of Beetroot Juice

Beetroot juice is commonly used to increase the amount of Nitric Oxide (NO) that is

produced in the body by ingesting a dietary nitrate. Many athletes are drinking beetroot juice

because an increase in NO can lead to an increased amount of oxygen-rich blood being

delivered to working muscles. More oxygen being delivered can prolong the time to fatigue

making it an ideal supplement to increase a person’s exercise endurance. Fortunately, beetroot

juice and supplements are relatively inexpensive in comparison to many other ergogenic aids

on the market. A simple Google search shows that actual beets and beetroot supplements can

cost anywhere from a few dollars to up to $40 (Google, 2018).

How Does Beetroot Juice Work?

Beetroot contains high amounts of inorganic nitrate (NO3-) and because it is a dietary nitrate, it

is converted to nitrite (NO2-) by reductase enzymes that are found in the gastrointestinal

system. The nitrite is further broken down to nitric oxide (NO) (Kroll, 2018). Beetroot is showing

to increase the level of NO in the body. NO has many functions. It is commonly known as

vasodilator that opens blood vessels to allow for greater amounts of gas exchange. With

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increased amounts of gas exchange, more oxygen can be released into the working muscle

because the vasodilation allows for more blood flow to the working muscle fiber. Nitric oxide is

also showing to help with increasing mitochondrial efficiency. (Dominguez & Cuenca, 2017).

Mitochondria are typically considered the “power house” of the cell in terms of energy

production. Improving the efficiency of mitochondria could produce great rewards in terms of

athletic performances when it’s a fraction of a second between first and second place.

Performance Benefits of Beetroot Juice

Beetroot juice is currently being studied to discover if it provides any beneficial

enhancements to cardiorespiratory endurance in athletes. Some studies have shown that

consuming beetroot juice has increased an athlete’s cardiorespiratory endurance by prolonging

distances traveled, increased time to exhaustion and possibly improved anaerobic thresholds

by increasing the amount of Nitric Oxide (NO) in the blood (Dominguez & Cuenca, 2017). A

study conducted on trained cyclists found an improvement of 0.8% in a 50-mile cycle ride. This

improvement was attributed to decrease in time to perform the test because there were

improvements in efficiency for the cyclist (Dominguez, 2018). Another study testing sub-

maximal VO2 found an improvement of 16% when testing at 90% VO2max for time to

exhaustion (Dominguez, 2018). Considering that these subjects were working at 90% of their

VO2max, an improvement of 16% is quite good.

There is no definitive amount of beetroot juice that one should drink to reap the

optimal rewards of improved cardiorespiratory function. It appears that the beetroot juice

concentration is more of a dose-response relationship for each person (Burke, 2013). However,

some studies have shown that drinking 0.5L of beetroot for 6 days prior to the exercise event

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increased in NO concentration in the blood. (Volpe, 2013). Other studies have had trained

athletes drink a solution of 8.2mmol nitrate beet juice 90 minutes and 150 minutes prior to an

exercise bout. Statistical analyses reported that peak power was significantly increased with the

beet juice supplement compared to the placebo drink group. In general, it’s safe to say that a

beetroot juice supplement of 6-8mmol of nitrate will help to improve cardiorespiratory

endurance when consumed 90 minutes prior to competition. (Dominguez & Cuenca, 2017). It is

recommended that an endurance athlete drink or take a supplement of beetroot juice 90

minutes prior because the peak levels of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2-) occur 2-3 hours after taking a

beetroot supplement (Dominguez & Cuenca, 2017). This supplement timing could prove critical

to an endurance athlete as having improved blood flow to muscles and increased gas exchange

occurring during a race when the body may begin to fatigue.

If cardio respiratory endurance is not your mainstay, a study has been conducted on the

effects of beetroot juice supplementation during high-intensity and explosive-type training.

One study looking into if beetroot juice could produce any positive benefits for high-intensity

athletes noted improvements in faster phosocreatine resynthesis. This is a very promising

finding as phosocreatine is the immediate energy source for explosive training. Explosive efforts

are those that last less than six seconds and rely primarily on the phosphagen system to provide

energy (Dominguez, 2017). By being able to replenish quick energy stores even faster could

potentially delay the depletion of quick energy leading to a longer duration of repetitive

exercise efforts (Dominguez, 2017).

There is also promising evidence that beet juice can have a positive effect on Type II

muscle fibers by causing a “greater release and reuptake of calcium from the sarcoplasmic

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reticulum…” (Dominguez, 2017). A greater release and reuptake could lead to more energy

production within the Type II muscle fibers benefiting athletes that train their muscles

explosively in high-intensity bouts.

Summary of research studies conducted

Most of the studies conducted have concluded that supplementing with beetroot juice

is proving beneficial by increasing exercise economy in endurance sports and increasing

phosocreatine resynthesis in explosive bouts of exercise. Many studies have concluded that an

athlete’s time-to-exhaustion has been increased when working at several VO2max intensities.

One thing that is important to note is that beetroot supplements should not be taken with oral

antiseptic rinses. Oral antiseptic rinses inhibit the increases in NO2- levels after supplementing

with beetroot juice (Cermark, 2012).

Potential Dangers of Beetroot Juice

If a little bit of something is good, then a lot of it is even better, right? Unfortunately,

that’s not particularly true for beetroot juice. Beetroot juice is very potent and drinking several

glasses of beetroot juice a day may not be the best practice. Excessively drinking beet juice can

actually cause an accumulation of metals in the body. Metals such as copper, iron, phosphorus

and magnesium can all be raised to levels high enough to damage the pancreas and liver (Shaw,

2017).

One downside of beetroot juice is it can cause “beeturia.” Beeturia is a discoloration of

one’s urine or feces resulting in a pink or red color. While it may be alarming, it’s potentially

harmless. Discolored urine or feces results from the inability of the body to break down

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betanin. Betanin gives beets their strong red color so an inability to break it down results in

pigmented bodily wastes (Luo, 2018).

Conclusion

Supplementing with beetroot or drinking beetroot juice is showing signs of improved

performance for both the endurance athlete and high-intensity athlete. Beetroot contains high

amounts of inorganic nitrate (NO3-) which is showing as evidence as a precursor to nitric oxide.

Studies have shown that athletes tested at different stages of the VO2max showed delayed

signs of fatigue and increased peak power in endurance-based training. Anaerobic thresholds

have also been noted to be increased which could be a big benefit for an athlete that is

competing in athletic events that require extremely quick energy production via the

phosphocreatine system. Beetroot juice or beetroot supplements do not need to be taken in

large quantities, but rather in smaller, more concentrated amounts. There is no definitive

timing for when to ingest a supplement, but the data is showing that 90 minutes prior to

competition for an endurance event appears to create the best window of opportunity for

increasing the level of NO in the blood.

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References

Beetroot. (N.D.). Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beetroot

Burke, L. (2013). To beet or not to beet? Journal of Applied Physiology. doi:

https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00612.2013

Cermak N., Gibala M., Van Loon J. Nitrate Supplementation’s Improvement of 10-km Time-Trial
Performance in Trained Cyclists. Int. J. Sport Nutr. Exerc. Metab. 2012;22:64–71. doi:
10.1123/ijsnem.22.1.64.

Domínguez, R., Cuenca, E., Maté-Muñoz, J. L., García-Fernández, P., Serra-Paya, N., Estevan, M.
C. L., … Garnacho-Castaño, M. V. (2017). Effects of Beetroot Juice Supplementation on
Cardiorespiratory Endurance in Athletes. A Systematic Review. Nutrients, 9(1), 43.
http://doi.org/10.3390/nu9010043

Domínguez, R., Maté-Muñoz, J.L., Cuenca, E. et al. (2018). Effects of beetroot juice
supplementation on intermittent high-intensity exercise efforts. Journal of the
International Society of Sports Nutrition. doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-017-
0204-9

Google Search (14 September 2018). How much does beetroot juice cost?

Kroll, J., Werchan, C., Rosenfield, D., Ritz, T. (2018). Acute ingestion of beetroot juice increases
exhaled nitric oxide in healthy individuals. Plos. doi:
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0191030

Luo, E. (12 April 2018). Do beets make your pee red? All about beeturia. Healthline. Retrieved
form https://www.healthline.com/health/beeturia

Shaw, J. (3 October 2017). Dangers of juicing beets. Live Strong. Retrieved from
https://www.livestrong.com/article/555645-dangers-of-juicing-beets/

Volpe, S. (2013). Does beetroot juice really help with endurance performance? ACSM’s Health
& Fitness Journal, 17(1) 29-30. doi: 10.1249/FIT.0b013e318279412a

Ware, M. (23 February 2017). What are the benefits of beetroot? Medical News Today.
Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/277432.php

Weinblatt, V. (3 October 2017). How to prepare beetroot juice. Live Strong. Retrieved from
https://www.livestrong.com/article/430826-how-to-prepare-beetroot-juice/