Women’s mouths have bacteria that turn nitrate into something else more efficiently than men’s, whether or not they’ve taken nitrate supplements—and this isn’t because their mouth bacteria are different kinds.

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Pro

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Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

20

Community contributions welcome

20

Sex differences in the nitrate‐nitrite‐NO• pathway: Role of oral nitrate‐reducing bacteria

Cross-Sectional Study

Human

2018 Oct

The study found that women’s mouths convert more nitrate to nitrite than men’s, both before and after taking nitrate supplements, and this isn’t because they have different bacteria — it’s just how their bodies work differently.

Contradicting (0)

0

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No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

Sex differences in the nitrate‐nitrite‐NO• pathway: Role of oral nitrate‐reducing bacteria

Score: 20

DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2018.07.010

Similar Assertions

Your mouth has good bacteria that turn nitrate from food into nitrite, and this process works differently in men and women, which might affect how well their blood vessels work.

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The amount of oral bacteria that convert nitrates to nitrites varies a lot between people, from less than 0.1% to over 85% of all oral bacteria.

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45

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