{
  "abstract": "Background/Objectives: Dietary nitrate supplementation improves exercise performance in recreationally active individuals, but efficacy in athletes remains debated. This meta-analysis evaluated the effects of dietary nitrate supplementation on six exercise performance and physiological/perceptual outcomes-peak power (PP), mean power (MP), maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂max), heart rate (HR), blood lactate (LAC), and rating of perceived exertion (RPE)-in athletes across diverse sports and protocols. Methods: Forty-five randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving 659 healthy athletes (Tier 2 or higher) were included. Random-effects meta-analyses calculated pooled Hedges' g. Subgroup, sensitivity, and publication bias analyses were conducted. Results: No statistically significant overall effect was found for any of the six outcomes (all p > 0.05). In exploratory subgroup analyses, PP showed a positive effect in male-only studies (g = 0.29, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.56, p = 0.04), but the interaction with mixed-sex studies was not significant (p = 0.11). Beetroot and nitrate salts did not differ in VO₂max. And trim-and-fill imputed five studies, reducing this estimate to zero. Subgroup analyses by sport type and exercise type (endurance, intermittent team sports, strength/power) revealed no significant differences. Conclusions: Dietary nitrate supplementation produced no statistically significant pooled ergogenic effects in athletes. Any potential benefit appears small and context-dependent, and the possible role of vascular endothelial function in high-performance athletes warrants further investigation. The absence of statistically significant effects should not be regarded as definitive evidence of no effect.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK.",
    "School of Athletic Performance, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China.",
    "School of Medical and Health Sciences, Centre for Human Performance, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup 6027, Australia."
  ],
  "article_type": "review article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yiqing Xie",
      "orcid": "0009-0008-1798-6968"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yemin Han",
      "orcid": "0009-0001-0975-6272"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Qing Du"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Kai Xu",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1403-4127"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xxhbzrxsz3k4.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/sports14100466",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13709359",
  "id": "2xxhbzrxsz3k4",
  "issns": [
    "2075-4663"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931603",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2707|Cardiovascular and exercise physiology"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223013343",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13709359?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13709359",
  "pmid": "42931603",
  "published": "2026-10-20",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xxhbzrxsz3k4.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:22:01Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42931603",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931603"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2707|Cardiovascular and exercise physiology",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Dietary Nitrate Supplementation and Exercise Performance in Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.",
  "title_text": "Dietary Nitrate Supplementation and Exercise Performance in Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:22:01Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xxhbzrxsz3k4",
  "venue": "Sports (Basel, Switzerland)",
  "versions": []
}