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Purpose

The goal of this randomized counterbalanced repeated measures study is to test beet-root juice supplementation and red light therapy augment forearm muscle endurance in apparently healthy older adults over 65 years of age. The main questions seek to answer the following question: Does beet-root juice supplementation improve forearm muscle endurance compared to a placebo supplement? Does red light therapy improve forearm muscle endurance compared to a sham light exposure? Does beet-root juice supplementation in combination with red light therapy improve forearm muscle endurance compared to a placebo-sham light control?

Conditions

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Over 65 Years
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Inclusion Criteria

  • Self-reports performing at least 30 minutes of light to moderate intensity physical activity 3 times per week for the last three months

Exclusion Criteria

  • Currently smoke - Have smoked within the last 6 months - Are taking taking supplements known to increase blood nitrate levels - Have a known kidney disease - Have a known liver disease - Have a known thyroid condition - Have a known gastritis condition - Are taking medications that are known to cause complications with nitrate supplementation - Have known or reported joint pain within the dominant hand

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention Model
Crossover Assignment
Primary Purpose
Basic Science
Masking
Single (Participant)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
Beet-root juice plus red-light therapy
  • Dietary Supplement: Beet-root juice
    Two days prior to the forearm endurance protocol, participants will be provided and instructed to consume a 400mg nitrate once per day. On the day of the forearm endurance protocol, the participants will be provided and instructed to consume a third 400mg dose of nitrates at least 150 minutes before forearm endurance testing.
    Other names:
    • Beet it Sport
  • Radiation: red-light therapy
    Participants will place their dominant forearm 15 centimeters away from the light source and have their dominant forearm exposed to 660nm wave length light for 10-minutes.
    Other names:
    • MitoMIN
Sham Comparator
Beet-root juice plus sham light therapy
  • Dietary Supplement: Beet-root juice
    Two days prior to the forearm endurance protocol, participants will be provided and instructed to consume a 400mg nitrate once per day. On the day of the forearm endurance protocol, the participants will be provided and instructed to consume a third 400mg dose of nitrates at least 150 minutes before forearm endurance testing.
    Other names:
    • Beet it Sport
  • Radiation: sham light
    Participants will place their dominant forearm 15 centimeters away from the light source and have their dominant forearm exposed to sham light for 10-minutes.
Placebo Comparator
Placebo plus red-light therapy
  • Radiation: red-light therapy
    Participants will place their dominant forearm 15 centimeters away from the light source and have their dominant forearm exposed to 660nm wave length light for 10-minutes.
    Other names:
    • MitoMIN
  • Dietary Supplement: Placebo
    Two days prior to the forearm endurance protocol, participants will be provided and instructed to consume a nitrate depleted placebo once per day. On the day of the forearm endurance protocol, the participants will be provided and instructed to consume a third dose of the nitrate depleted placebo at least 150 minutes before forearm endurance testing.
Active Comparator
Placebo plus sham light therapy
  • Dietary Supplement: Placebo
    Two days prior to the forearm endurance protocol, participants will be provided and instructed to consume a nitrate depleted placebo once per day. On the day of the forearm endurance protocol, the participants will be provided and instructed to consume a third dose of the nitrate depleted placebo at least 150 minutes before forearm endurance testing.
  • Radiation: sham light
    Participants will place their dominant forearm 15 centimeters away from the light source and have their dominant forearm exposed to sham light for 10-minutes.

Recruiting Locations

Wake Forest Univesity
Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27106
Contact:
Andrew D Wells, Ph.D.
336-758-5837
wellsa@wfu.edu

More Details

Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
Wake Forest University

Study Contact

Andrew D Wells, Ph.D.
(336) 758-5837
wellsa@wfu.edu

Notice

Study information shown on this site is derived from ClinicalTrials.gov (a public registry operated by the National Institutes of Health). The listing of studies provided is not certain to be all studies for which you might be eligible. Furthermore, study eligibility requirements can be difficult to understand and may change over time, so it is wise to speak with your medical care provider and individual research study teams when making decisions related to participation.