Mar 19, 2023 09:00:00

Research results that `` nitrates '' contained in spinach and bok choy boost muscle strength

A study reported that a chemical called

nitrate , which is abundant in leafy vegetables such as spinach and bok choy, has the effect of acting on muscles and boosting muscle strength.

15N‐labeled dietary nitrate supplementation increases human skeletal muscle nitrate concentration and improves muscle torque production - Kadach - 2023 - Acta Physiologica - Wiley Online Library
https://doi.org/10.1111/apha.13924

Supercharge Your Workouts: Active Molecule of Beetroot Juice Significantly Increases Muscle Force During Exercise
https://scitechdaily.com/supercharge-your-workouts-active-molecule-of-beetroot-juice-significantly-increases-muscle-force-during-exercise/

Nitrate is a nutrient abundant in leafy green vegetables and consists of one nitrogen atom and three oxygen atoms. It has long been suggested that dietary nitrates may boost muscle strength, but there were still many unknowns about the actual mechanisms by which nitrates act.

Therefore, a research team

at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom and the National Institutes of Health in the United States recruited 10 healthy subjects and conducted an experiment to investigate how ingested nitrates are distributed in saliva, blood, urine, and muscle. I was.

In the experiment, the collected subjects were asked to drink a drink containing nitrate marked with a stable isotope (tracer) or a drink containing the same amount of potassium chloride as a placebo, from before to 3 hours after ingestion. Saliva, blood, urine, and muscle samples were collected periodically. Also, one hour after taking nitrate, the subject used an exercise machine for 5 minutes and trained to contract the thigh (roughly) quadriceps muscle 60 times at maximum strength. The research team also collects detailed data on the performance of this muscle training.

As a result of analyzing the sample, it was found that orally ingested nitrate increased in saliva, blood, urine, and muscle within 1 hour, while nitrate contained in muscle significantly decreased after training. It was also reported that the nitrate group had a 7% increase in muscle strength compared to the placebo group. In other words, when the body's nitrate is abundant, it was shown that muscle strength may be improved by consuming nitrate in the muscle.

'This latest study provides the best evidence to date for the mechanism by which dietary nitrates enhance muscle performance in humans,' said co-author Andy Jones, Professor of Applied Physiology at the University of Exeter. I was able to get it,' he said.

Dr. Barbora Piknova, a scientist at the National Institutes of Health, argues that nitrates improve muscle strength because they act as a source of

nitric oxide , which increases blood flow. “These findings may have significant implications not only for exercise, but also for other medical areas, such as targeting neuromuscular and metabolic diseases associated with nitric oxide deficiency.” I commented.