Cited by 1,078Nitric Oxide and Endothelin EffectsCardiovascular Health and Disease PreventionPhytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities

Acute Blood Pressure Lowering, Vasoprotective, and Antiplatelet Properties of Dietary Nitrate via Bioconversion to Nitrite

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Webb, Andrew J., Patel, Nakul, Loukogeorgakis, Stavros, Okorie, Mike, Aboud, Zainab, Misra, Shivani, Rashid, Rahim, Miall, Philip +5 more·2008·Hypertension

Abstract

Diets rich in fruits and vegetables reduce blood pressure (BP) and the risk of adverse cardiovascular events. However, the mechanisms of this effect have not been elucidated. Certain vegetables possess a high nitrate content, and we hypothesized that this might represent a source of vasoprotective nitric oxide via bioactivation. In healthy volunteers, approximately 3 hours after ingestion of a dietary nitrate load (beetroot juice 500 mL), BP was substantially reduced (Δ max −10.4/8 mm Hg); an effect that correlated with peak increases in plasma nitrite concentration. The dietary nitrate load also prevented endothelial dysfunction induced by an acute ischemic insult in the human forearm and significantly attenuated ex vivo platelet aggregation in response to collagen and ADP. Interruption of the enterosalivary conversion of nitrate to nitrite (facilitated by bacterial anaerobes situated on the surface of the tongue) prevented the rise in plasma nitrite, blocked the decrease in BP, and abolished the inhibitory effects on platelet aggregation, confirming that these vasoprotective effects were attributable to the activity of nitrite converted from the ingested nitrate. These findings suggest that dietary nitrate underlies the beneficial effects of a vegetable-rich diet and highlights the potential of a “natural” low cost approach for the treatment of cardiovascular disease.

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Crossref · 10.1161/hypertensionaha.107.103523

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  • Nitrate dosing amounts (300-600 mg or 0.1 mmol/kg/day) appear to be well tolerated without significant alterations in hemodynamics or clinical boundaries of hepatorenal and muscle enzyme status.

    “These dosing amounts appear to be well tolerated when consumed as both supplemental [587] and supplemental sources [588] without significant alterations in hemodynamics or clinical boundaries of hepatorenal and muscle enzyme status [478, 589].”

    From ISSN exercise & sports nutrition review update: research & recommendations (2018) · cites this paper as [588]

    The Results state that beetroot juice was generally well tolerated. But the Results section ‘Dietary nitrate lowers BP’ reports significant reductions in blood pressure, contrary to the claim of no significant hemodynamic alteration. The paper does not report hepatorenal or muscle enzyme safety measurements; its Discussion mentions 0.1 mmol/kg/day only when describing another study. (LLM, conf=0.90)

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  • Dietary NO3- supplementation through NO3- salts or vegetable products such as beetroot juice reduces blood pressure in healthy young and old humans.

    “The NO3-- NO2--NO reduction pathway underpins the discovery that dietary NO3- supplementation through consumption of NO3- salts [27] or vegetable products such as beetroot juice [23], [40] reduces blood pressure (BP) in healthy young and old humans.”

    From Nitrate-responsive oral microbiome modulates nitric oxide homeostasis and blood pressure in humans (2018) · cites this paper as [40]

    The Results ('Dietary nitrate lowers BP'; page unavailable) report that beetroot juice lowered blood pressure compared with water, and the Methods ('BP study'; page unavailable) identify the participants as healthy volunteers. Our copy does not establish that this finding applies to both young and old humans; the sodium-nitrate salt finding is discussed as a separate study. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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  • The magnitude of the blood pressure response to NO3- supplementation is correlated with baseline blood pressure.

    “The magnitude of the BP response to NO3-supplementation is correlated with baseline blood pressure [22], [40]”

    From Nitrate-responsive oral microbiome modulates nitric oxide homeostasis and blood pressure in humans (2018) · cites this paper as [40]

    The Results section reports that beetroot juice lowered blood pressure, but its reported correlation is between the change in plasma nitrite and the change in systolic blood pressure—not between baseline blood pressure and the size of the response. The Discussion notes a larger response to a fruit-and-vegetable diet in hypertensive than normotensive people and suggests nitrate's effect might likewise be greater; it does not establish the claimed correlation for nitrate supplementation. No page numbers are available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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  • Dietary nitrate has a range of beneficial vascular effects, including reducing blood pressure, inhibiting platelet aggregation, preserving or improving endothelial dysfunction, enhancing exercise performance in healthy individuals and patients with peripheral arterial disease.

    “Dietary nitrate has been demonstrated to have a range of beneficial vascular effects, including reducing blood pressure, inhibiting platelet aggregation, preserving or improving endothelial dysfunction, enhancing exercise performance in healthy individuals and patients with peripheral arterial disease.”

    From Vascular effects of dietary nitrate (as found in green leafy vegetables and beetroot) via the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway (2013) · cites this paper as [79]

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  • In healthy volunteers, beetroot juice as a nitrate source reduces blood pressure by about 10 mm Hg, coinciding with peak plasma nitrite levels.

    “Andrew Webb (Barts and The London Medical School) and colleagues used beetroot juice as a source of nitrate in healthy volunteers and found a reduction in blood pressure of ~10 mm Hg that coincided with peak plasma levels of nitrite37.”

    From Nitrate and nitrite in biology, nutrition and therapeutics (2009) · cites this paper as [37]

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Authors
Webb, A. J., Patel, N., Loukogeorgakis, S., Okorie, M., Aboud, Z., Misra, S., Rashid, R., Miall, P., Deanfield, J., Benjamin, N., MacAllister, R., Hobbs, A. J., & Ahluwalia, A.
Affiliations
Queen Mary University of London (GB)
Venue
Hypertension
Published
2008-03
Volume
51
Issue
3
Pages
784-790
ISSN
  • 0194-911X (ISSN-L)
  • 1524-4563
OpenAlex
W2161221966
Cited by
1,078
References
51
Citations by year
2026: 35 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 47 · 2023: 59 · 2022: 59 · 2021: 55 · 2020: 73 · 2019: 69 · 2018: 78 · 2017: 80 · 2016: 73 · 2015: 74 · 2014: 79 · 2013: 59 · 2012: 65
FWCI
30.49
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Hypertension (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Wellcome Trust (067422)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nitric Oxide and Endothelin Effects
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Health and Disease Prevention
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Biochemistry › Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities
Keywords
dietary nitrate, beetroot juice, blood pressure reduction, nitric oxide, endothelial dysfunction, platelet aggregation, cardiovascular disease
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Blood Pressure, Diet, Endothelium, Vascular, Humans, Hypertension, Middle Aged, Nitrates, Nitrites, Platelet Aggregation, Saliva, Tongue, Reperfusion Injury, Cross-Over Studies, Beta vulgaris

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