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Nitrate derived from beetroot juice lowers blood pressure in patients with arterial hypertension: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PRISMA systematic review and meta-analysis (7 double-blind RCTs, n=218 adults with hypertension) of nitrate-rich beetroot juice versus control: pooled systolic BP −4.95 mmHg (95% CI −8.88 to −1.01; GRADE moderate); diastolic BP change not statistically significant (−0.90 mmHg; 95% CI −3.16 to 1.36; p≈0.06).

Design

  • Included: single- or double-blind RCTs; adults >18 y with hypertension (SBP >130 and DBP >80 mmHg)
  • Intervention: nitrate-rich beetroot juice in a blindable format vs control beverage
  • Corpus: 7 trials, 218 participants; intervention 3–60 days, roughly 70–250 mL/day BRJ
  • Appraisal: Cochrane RoB tools + GRADE

Pooled BP vs control (abstract-reported)

  • SBP: −4.95 mmHg (95% CI −8.88 to −1.01; p < 0.001) — authors graded moderate certainty
  • DBP: −0.90 mmHg (95% CI −3.16 to 1.36; p = 0.06) — not significant in primary pooled framing; still moderate GRADE label in abstract

How to read next to broader nitrate RCT pools

This synthesis restricts to beetroot-juice trials in diagnosed hypertension. Pooled inorganic nitrate reviews that mix populations and vehicles can reach different subgroup conclusions—see zhang-2023-dietary-nitrate-bp-rct-meta on the same protocol page.

Registry

PROSPERO record 269339 (as linked from the PubMed entry).

Outcomes

  • Systolic Blood Pressure
    -4.95
    mmHg (Millimetres of Mercury)
  • Diastolic Blood Pressure
    -0.9
    mmHg (Millimetres of Mercury)
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