Influência do suco de beterraba nas concentrações sanguíneas de lactato em praticantes de exercícios físicos: uma revisão narrativa

Abstract

The interest in beetroot juice as a supplement has grown in sports nutrition, for it seems to bring ergogenic effects on physical exercises performance, considering its levels of inorganic nitrate, which promotes an increase in the plasma concentration of nitric oxide. Among the possible benefits is the reduction of blood lactate concentrations. The aim of this study is to describe and synthesize the available information about the possible effects of beetroot juice supplementation on blood lactate concentration in physical exercise practitioners. A search was conducted in electronic databases such as: PubMed, Scientific Electronic Library (SciELO) and Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde (Lilacs), via Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS), with the search strategy: “lactate” AND “beetroot”, using descriptors in Portuguese, English and Spanish. 38 studies were found and 15 were selected after using the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Based on the results, 80% (n=12) of the studies did not demonstrate significant changes in the blood lactate concentrations of the participants, while 13.3% (n=2) indicated an increase and 6.25% (n=1) indicated some reduction. In terms of positive effects, 66.7% (n=10) of the studies indicated, at least, one improvement in the variables related to the performance. Therefore, further studies are needed to address the supplementation of beetroot juice in physical exercise practitioners, mainly in relation to the standardization of the dosage to reach the expected benefits and the supplementation protocols that consider the sport modality, training duration, intensity and other factors.