Beetroot Juice Improved Aerobic Endurance and Blood Pressure in Heart Failure Patients

HealthDay News – Beetroot juice (BRJ) improves submaximal aerobic endurance and blood pressure in elderly patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), according to a small study published online February 10 in JACC: Heart Failure.

Joel Eggebeen, from the Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and colleagues treated 20 HFpEF patients (average age: 69 years ) in an initial cross-over design comparing a single, acute dose of BRJ (6.1 mmol nitrate) to a nitrate-depleted, placebo BRJ. During the second week, all patients consumed BRJ for an average of 7 days of daily dosing.

Researchers found that submaximal aerobic endurance improved 24% after 1 week of daily BRJ dosing (P=.02), but was not affected by the single, acute dose of BRJ, compared to placebo. Both dosing schemes significantly reduced resting systolic blood pressure and increased plasma nitrate and nitrite.

“One week of daily dosing with BRJ (6.1 mmol inorganic nitrate) significantly improves submaximal aerobic endurance and blood pressure in elderly HFpEF patients,” the authors wrote.

Disclosures: Several authors disclosed financial ties to the nutrition and pharmaceutical industries.

Reference

Eggebeen J, Kim-Shapiro DB, Haykowsky M, et al. One week of daily dosing with beetroot juice improves submaximal endurance and blood pressure in older patients with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction. JACC Heart Failure. 2016. doi:10.1016/j.jchf.2015.12.013.