Baking soda???

[data210]

After my nutrition class tonight I stopped by my teachers desk to ask a few questions about my diet and caloric intake. We got to talking about what supplements he thinks are worth taking, and he said something that totally took me off guard. He said that the best supplement in his eyes is BAKING SODA. He told me he thinks it's better than creatine, but should be carefully dosed due to diarrhea if too much is consumed. He told me to start taking one tsp before working out to help relieve lactic acid build up.

Has anyone heard of, or tried this before?

 

[egodog48]

I have never heard of this before. What was his reasoning? I'd be interested to hear some of the science behind this.

 

[data210]

He was strapped for time so I couldn't get any details from him aside that it would help prevent lactic acid buildup, which would reduce post workout soreness and speed up recovery. He said it was the most effect workout supplement around. I'm going to give it a try as soon as I kick this sore throat and cold. I'll post my results!

 

[nni]

ive heard of this, several studies have been done on it. it will improve short term high intensity exercise. be careful with dosing.

 

[data210]

Thanks nni, I'll give it a go.

 

[Little Wing]

In Rare Cases of Indigestion, Baking Soda May Be a Peril - New York Times


Baking soda, like aspirin, bandages and rubbing alcohol, has been a staple in medicine cabinets for more than a century. Over that time, billions of doses of sodium bicarbonate have followed holiday feasts, spicy foods or samplings of unusual recipes into the digestive systems of the nation.
Few people report adverse effects from the common household chemical. But ingesting it has been associated with scattered cases of stomachs bursting, presumably because of carbon dioxide gas the compound releases into the digestive organ when it is unusually full.





....




"Physicians don't tell people to take baking soda for indigestion, even if it works, because of all the sodium it contains," he said. "Excess sodium causes things like high blood pressure, heart disease and kidney problems."



be careful.

 

[nni]

yes, sodium should be severly cut and monitored, it simply doesnt make sense to use it.

 

[tucker01]

J Appl Physiol. 2005 Nov;99(5):1668-75. Epub 2005 Jul 7.Related Articles, Links
[SIZE=+1]NaHCO3-induced alkalosis reduces the phosphocreatine slow component during heavy-intensity forearm exercise.[/SIZE]

Forbes SC, Raymer GH, Kowalchuk JM, Marsh GD.

School of Kinesiology, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A-3K7.

During heavy-intensity exercise, the mechanisms responsible for the continued slow decline in phosphocreatine concentration ([PCr]) (PCr slow component) have not been established. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that a reduced intracellular acidosis would result in a greater oxidative flux and, consequently, a reduced magnitude of the PCr slow component. Subjects (n = 10) performed isotonic wrist flexion in a control trial and in an induced alkalosis (Alk) trial (0.3g/kg oral dose of NaHCO3, 90 min before testing). Wrist flexion, at a contraction rate of 0.5 Hz, was performed for 9 min at moderate- (75% of onset of acidosis; intracellular pH threshold) and heavy-intensity (125% intracellular pH threshold) exercise. 31P-magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to measure intracellular [H+], [PCr], [Pi], and [ATP]. The initial recovery data were used to estimate the rate of ATP synthesis and oxidative flux at the end of heavy-intensity exercise. In repeated trials, venous blood sampling was used to measure plasma [H+], [HCO3-], and [Lac-]. Throughout rest and exercise, plasma [H+] was lower (P < 0.05) and [HCO3-] was elevated (P < 0.05) in Alk compared with control. During the final 3 min of heavy-intensity exercise, Alk caused a lower (P < 0.05) intracellular [H+] [246 (SD 117) vs. 291 nmol/l (SD 129)], a greater (P < 0.05) [PCr] [12.7 (SD 7.0) vs. 9.9 mmol/l (SD 6.0)], and a reduced accumulation of [ADP] [0.065 (SD 0.031) vs. 0.098 mmol/l (SD 0.059)]. Oxidative flux was similar (P > 0.05) in the conditions at the end of heavy-intensity exercise. In conclusion, our results are consistent with a reduced intracellular acidosis, causing a decrease in the magnitude of the PCr slow component. The decreased PCr slow component in Alk did not appear to be due to an elevated oxidative flux.

Publication Types:

• Clinical Trial

PMID: 16002768 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE

 

[Little Wing]

Food and Fitness: sodium bicarbonate
A salt of sodium that neutralizes acids. Sodium bicarbonate is taken to treat stomach disorders, acidosis, and sodium deficiency. It is used as a raising agent in food (baking powder).

Sodium bicarbonate is also used in tablet form as an ergogenic aid in a process called bicarbonate loading. The extra bicarbonate is taken to increase the blood's alkalinity and buffering capacity so that more lactic acid can be neutralized. This would delay the onset of fatigue. There are conflicting views about its effectiveness, but ingesting at least 300 mg of bicarbonate per kilogram body weight 2-3 hours before exercise may delay fatigue and increase performance in bouts of maximal effort activity lasting more than 1 minute and less than 7 minutes. Bicarbonate loading has improved the performance of average 800 metre runners by several seconds, but it may not have such a marked effect on well-trained, elite athletes. In addition, bicarbonate loading causes unpleasant side-effects in some people, the most common being gastrointestinal distress (e.g. cramping, bloating, and diarrhoea). Improvements in performance can be achieved with less risk by appropriate training. In general, bicarbonate loading should not be given serious consideration by athletes.

 

[tucker01]

Some more reading