Nitric Oxide Increases Blood Flow to Muscles → CASPER BILTON

Nitrates can boost athletic performance and protect against heart disease. Nitrate in food is the main component that contributes to the generation of Nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is an essential molecule for human metabolism since it plays an active role in body functions. The biggest role is to control vasodilatation and blood flow, which enhances performance. Vasodilation is the widening of blood vessels.

human heart illustration — Educational Heart

Eating foods high in Nitrates creates Nitric oxide in the body. This allows blood to flow more easily. Nitric oxide increases the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart. Thereby it increases the amount of work that the heart can do by expanding the arteries and veins. This reduces the amount of blood that returns to the heart which musts be pumped out again. The arteries now have lower pressure in the arteries. As a consequence of this, the heart works less and requires less blood and oxygen.

All this means that Nitric oxide plays a critical role in endothelial function. It promotes relaxation of vascular smooth muscles. Vascular smooth muscle refers to the particular type of smooth muscle found within the wall of blood vessels. The arteries and veins carry blood throughout the body, delivering oxygen and nutrients to the body tissues.

Did you know?

Recent studies increased levels of coronary atherosclerosis among athletes. Consumption of high fat diets like the Western diet is associated with alterations and stiffening of blood vessels. Atherosclerosis is a disease which leads to stiffening & narrowing arteries. Vegestables high in nitrates fight against atherosclerosis.

An Athletic booster; Nitric oxide has become a milestone in athletes physiology

Dietary nitrate supplements has an enhancing physical performance effect, due to the improvement of oxygen efficiency to the skeletal muscles. This will help to strength athletes and weightlifters seeking to increase muscle performance.

man holding yellow ball — Water Polo / Photo by Weston Eichner

Nitrate can help keeping the athletic career going in older age. Studies show that nitric oxide decrease with age. The older you get the more importance you eat high nitrate foods. This will improve longer tolerance to aerobic and anaerobic exercise.

The available results form different studies suggest that supplementation with high nitrate vegetables can improve endurance in athletes by increasing more efficiency, which improves performance at various distances. It also showed improvements in the cardiorespiratory performance at anaerobic threshold intensities and maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max).

The healthier and better trained athletes has less effects of nitrate supplements. This could be a big indication that ekstra supplementation would work better when athletes are in pre-season and working on getting in shape.

Top vegetables with high nitrate levels

Certain plant-based foods are rich in dietary nitrates, which your body can convert to nitric oxide. These foods can boost nitric oxide levels by activating nitric oxide synthase. Eating a lot of green leafy vegetables will boost nitric oxide. Diets rich in fruits and vegetables reduce blood pressure and the risk of adverse cardiovascular events. 3 hours after ingestion of a dietary nitrate load blood pressure will be substantially reduced.

Plants with the higher concentrate of nitrate

– Beetroot/beet juice
– Spinach
– Swiss chard
– Garlic
– Onions
– Lettuce
– Beet greens
– Basil
– Spring greens
– Cilantro
– Rhubarb
– Arugula