Taking nitrate supplements lowers blood pressure, and the more you take, the more your blood pressure goes down. The biggest drop was about 9 mm Hg for systolic and 6 mm Hg for diastolic blood pressure.
Scientific Claim
Inorganic nitrate supplementation causes dose-dependent reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure in healthy adults, with peak reductions of 9.4±1.6 mm Hg for systolic and 6.0±1.1 mm Hg for diastolic blood pressure at 6 hours and 2.75 hours respectively after 24 mmol KNO3 administration.
Original Statement
“KNO3 (24 mmol) ingestion caused reductions in both SBP and DBP over 24 hours compared with KCl control. The peak differences between the 2 limbs were 9.4±1.6 mm Hg (at 6 hours) and 6.0±1.1 mm Hg (at 2.75 hours) for SBP and DBP, respectively (Figure 2A and 2B).”
Evidence Quality Assessment
Claim Status
appropriately stated
Study Design Support
Design supports claim
Appropriate Language Strength
definitive
Can make definitive causal claims
Assessment Explanation
This is a randomized crossover study with control group (KCl), which can establish causation. The study directly measured blood pressure changes after controlled nitrate doses and found statistically significant reductions.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
Inorganic Nitrate Supplementation Lowers Blood Pressure in Humans: Role for Nitrite-Derived NO