Context: Beetroots have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, which may help attenuate inflammation and oxidative stress, enhancing recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD).
Objective: To evaluate the effects of beetroot supplementation on oxidative stress, inflammation, and recovery after EIMD.
Data sources: SPORTDiscus, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were searched, and hand-searching was performed by looking to relevant studies that were cited in other studies.
Study selection: For a study to be included in this review, the following inclusion criteria had to be met: (1) research conducted with human participants, (2) original articles in peer-reviewed publications, (3) original studies that had investigated beetroot supplementation intervention on muscle damage and recovery, (4) research conducted with 1 control/placebo group, and (5) articles published from inception to October 2020.
Study design: Systematic review using the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) statement.
Level of evidence: Level 3.
Data extraction: Two of the 4 authors independently extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of the articles with the PEDro scale. All discrepancies were resolved through a consensus meeting.
Results: A total of 9 studies were included in this review. The methodological quality of the included studies ranged from moderate to high. Most of the studies found a better recovery of functional variables and muscle soreness, but improvements in markers of muscle damage, inflammation, and oxidative stress were not reported.
Conclusion: The existing evidence suggests that a short-term beetroot supplementation has the potential to accelerate recovery of functional measures and muscle soreness, but further research is needed to clarify if a longer supplementation period (with some days before exercise and some days after) could also promote recovery of markers of muscle damage, inflammation, and oxidative stress.
Keywords: functional performance; inflammation; muscle damage; oxidative stress; recovery.