Researchers at King's College London investigated how the body can better utilize nitrate found in foods such as beetroot, spinach, and kale.
Nitrate only becomes active after bacteria in the mouth convert it into nitrite.
According to ScienceDaily, nitrite can cause blood vessels to widen, which may temporarily lower blood pressure.
Beetroot juice and chewing gum
In the study, published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, healthy volunteers drank a shot of beetroot juice.
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They then chewed either sugar-containing or sugar-free chewing gum.
The researchers measured participants' blood pressure and collected blood and saliva samples over several hours.
One week later, the participants repeated the experiment using the other type of chewing gum.
Sugar vs. sugar-free
Participants who chewed sugar-containing gum after drinking the beetroot juice had higher nitrite levels in both their saliva and blood than those who chewed sugar-free gum.
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Their blood pressure also fell slightly for a few hours.
The researchers emphasize that the findings do not mean sugar-containing chewing gum should be used to treat high blood pressure.
The effect was only temporary, and a high intake of sugar can be harmful to both dental and overall health.
The researchers believe the findings may help develop new methods to improve the body's use of nitrate without relying on sugar.
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They therefore plan to conduct a larger study involving athletes to investigate the effect further.