Beetroot juice boosts exercise capacity of COPD patients

Drinking beetroot juice may improve exercise capacity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, a new study has claimed.

The research by Wake Forest University looked at a small group of COPD patients who drank beetroot juice as compared to a placebo drink before exercise.

“The intent of this study was to determine if acute ingestion of beetroot juice, which is rich with nitrates, prior to exercising could improve the exercise capacity of COPD patients,” said Michael Berry, who is the primary investigator and lead author of the study.

COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, makes it difficult for patients to breathe and worsens over time.

Patients often complain of shortness of breath with exertion, so tasks like climbing steps can leave them gasping for air. In turn, they tend to limit their activities, become more sedentary, and lose fitness and physical function.

Berry said his study findings showed overall that those patients who drank beetroot juice were able to extend their exercise time, and had reduced exercise diastolic and resting systolic blood pressures.

This is the first study to demonstrate beneficial effects of dietary nitrite supplementation on exercise performance and blood pressure in patients with COPD, he added.

Researchers recruited 15 COPD patients; 11 white males, one African-American male and three white females. Patients completed four visits.

During visit one, they completed baseline pulmonary function testing, filled out health status questionnaires, had a brief medical examination and completed an incremental exercise test on a stationary bicycle to determine their maximal exercise work rate.

The second visit one week later consisted of additional pulmonary function and lung volume testing, as well as a familiarisation exercise test on an exercise bicycle at 75 per cent of the patients’ previously determined maximal work rates.

Participants were assigned to one of two treatments - beetroot juice (visit three) and placebo (visit four) or placebo (visit three) and beetroot juice (visit four). These visits were separated by at least a seven-day break.

The study was published in the journal Nitric Oxide: Biology and Chemistry.

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