Sodium bicarbonate supplementation and high-intensity exercise performance: a meta-analysis
Carr AJ, et al.
High-confidence evidence from multiple solid studies
Summary
Examined the buffering capacity of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃) on anaerobic and high-intensity exercise performance. Doses of 0.2–0.3 g/kg body weight produced statistically significant improvements in 1–10 minute high-intensity efforts, but with notable risk of gastrointestinal side effects (nausea, diarrhea).
Key findings
- 1
0.3 g/kg body weight of NaHCO₃ improves high-intensity short-duration performance (ES d ≈ 0.4)
- 2
Effective for anaerobic sustained efforts of 1–10 minutes (200m sprints, interval training)
- 3
Gastrointestinal side effects (nausea, bloating, diarrhea) are a significant drawback with high individual variation
- 4
Taking with food 90–120 minutes before exercise may reduce GI adverse effects
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