Research

Hormonal

Beetroot juice supplementation significantly lowers systolic blood pressure in normotensive and hypertensive individuals, primarily through the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway, though effects may be attenuated in diabetic patients or by factors that disrupt oral bacterial conversion.

For blood pressure management, beetroot juice (typically 250-500ml) may offer a modest reduction in systolic pressure, especially if you are hypertensive. However, do not rely on it if you have diabetes, as studies show inconsistent results in this group. Crucially, avoid using antibacterial mouthwash around the time of consumption, as the oral bacteria required to activate the nitrate are essential for the effect.

ModerateQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
The significant blood pressure lowering effect has been seen among normotensive subjects, which tend to be more considerable among hypertensive individuals... The overall results were ultimately found to be mostly inconsistent... no significant decrease of blood pressure has been admitted in diabetic patients... The reason for this discrepant result is unclear but may reflect... aberrant vascular physiology in diabetic patients
Parvin Mirmiran et al. · Nutrition & Metabolism · 2020

Why this rating

The paper is a review of multiple studies with inconsistent results, noting that while many show benefit, others show no effect, particularly in specific subgroups.

Source

Functional properties of beetroot (Beta vulgaris) in management of cardio-metabolic diseases

Parvin Mirmiran et al. · Nutrition & Metabolism · 2020

DOI 10.1186/s12986-019-0421-0

narrative_reviewCited 208×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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