Sodium Bicarbonate is most often used for Muscle Gain & Exercise. The Examine Database covers Cycling Performance, General Athletic Performance, and 17 other conditions and goals.

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Sodium Bicarbonate

Sodium bicarbonate is a buffer that neutralizes acidity in the human body. It is used in dental products and antacids and sometimes to treat acidosis in critical illness. When taken as a supplement, sodium bicarbonate can enhance exercise performance.

Sodium Bicarbonate is most often used for Muscle Gain & Exercise. The Examine Database covers Cycling Performance, General Athletic Performance, and 17 other conditions and goals.

Last Updated:December 23,

What is sodium bicarbonate?

Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), commonly known as baking soda, acts as a buffer to neutralize acids and is used in various medical applications, including dental care and treatment of heartburn and indigestion. It is also used in critical illness to treat acidosis and as a sports supplement for performance enhancement.

What are sodium bicarbonate’s main benefits?

Supplementing with sodium bicarbonate can enhance exercise performance during high-intensity activities and may lower cardiovascular risks in people with chronic kidney disease. It is also used in emergency settings for metabolic acidosis and has potential benefits in dental care, though more research is needed to confirm its effectiveness in these areas.

What are sodium bicarbonate’s main drawbacks?

Sodium bicarbonate can cause gastrointestinal side effects such as bloating, nausea, and vomiting when taken orally in doses higher than 0.3 grams per kilogram of body weight. Although rare adverse effects have been reported in individual cases, sodium bicarbonate is generally considered safe for oral consumption.

How does sodium bicarbonate work?

Sodium bicarbonate enhances high-intensity exercise performance by buffering hydrogen ion production, which helps maintain blood and muscle pH levels. However, high doses can lead to gastrointestinal side effects due to a reaction with stomach acid that produces carbon dioxide.

What are other names for Sodium Bicarbonate ?

Note that Sodium Bicarbonate is also known as:

• Baking Soda
• Bicarbonate of soda
• Bicarb
• Bicarbonate
• Sodium hydrogen carbonate
• Carbonic acid monosodium salt

Sodium Bicarbonate should not be confused with:

• Baking powder (which contains sodium bicarbonate mixed with an acidic ingredient)

Dosage information

Formulations: Sodium bicarbonate (often referred to as sodium bicarb, bicarb, baking soda, or bicarbonate of soda) is taken as tablets or loose powder when used as a supplement. In clinical practice, bicarbonate is administered intravenously as a solution.

Range of dosages studied: 0.2 to 0.5 grams of sodium bicarbonate per kilogram of body weight (g/kg). This is equivalent to 12–30 g (2–5 teaspoons) in a 60-kg person.

Safety information: Sodium bicarbonate interacts with several drugs, including aspirin, iron sulfate, and rosuvastatin (Crestor). If you use any of these drugs, always consult your doctor before using sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarbonate interacts with several conditions, including sodium/water balance and acid/base balance, which can affect people with chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, heart disease, or high blood pressure. If you have these conditions, always consult your doctor before using sodium bicarbonate.

Dosage recommendation: For exercise performance benefits, the optimal dose is approximately 0.3 grams per kilogram of body weight (g/kg) taken 1 to 3 hours before exercise. Alternatively, a multiday regimen can be used, consisting of 0.4 to 0.5 g/kg per day, distributed in smaller doses throughout the day (e.g., 0.1 to 0.2 g/kg at breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for 3 to 7 days before the day of exercise.[1]

Take with food: Optional.

Research FeedRead all studies

In this network meta-analysis of 58 randomized controlled trials, there was limited evidence that supplementing with arginine or citrulline improved swimming performance.

Frequently asked questions

Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), commonly known as baking soda, acts as a buffer to neutralize acids and is used in various medical applications, including dental care and treatment of heartburn and indigestion. It is also used in critical illness to treat acidosis and as a sports supplement for performance enhancement.

Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) primarily acts as a buffer to neutralize acids and is used as a drug in various medical applications including dental care products and antacids (to treat heartburn and indigestion, also known as dyspepsia).[2] Sodium bicarbonate is also sometimes used to treat acidosis in critical illness[3][4] and as a sports supplement for improving performance.[1][5] In the body, bicarbonate is produced by the kidneys and circulates in the blood to buffer changes in pH.[6][7]

Note that sodium bicarbonate is commonly known as baking soda in the US and Canada (or bicarbonate of soda in the UK, NZ, and Australia). This is not the same as baking powder, which contains sodium bicarbonate mixed with an acidic ingredient.

Supplementing with sodium bicarbonate can enhance exercise performance during high-intensity activities and may lower cardiovascular risks in people with chronic kidney disease. It is also used in emergency settings for metabolic acidosis and has potential benefits in dental care, though more research is needed to confirm its effectiveness in these areas.

Supplementation with sodium bicarbonate before exercise has been found to enhance exercise performance, particularly during high-intensity activities lasting between 30 seconds and 12 minutes, during tests assessing muscular endurance (e.g., tests measuring reps to failure or time to maintain a constant isometric force), and in combat sports.[1][8][9][10][11][12][13]

Sodium bicarbonate is sometimes used intravenously in emergency settings to treat metabolic acidosis, but its use in this context is nuanced.[3] For example, the use of sodium bicarbonate in newborns or people with diabetic ketoacidosis is controversial due to potential adverse effects.[14][15][16]

In people with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), some evidence shows that treatment with sodium bicarbonate is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular events, hospitalization, and mortality.[17][18] Some small studies have also shown that an intravenous infusion of sodium bicarbonate can prevent kidney problems caused by the dye used during angiography, a procedure used to identify the narrowing of blood vessels in the heart. However, large, well-designed randomized controlled trials[19][20] and meta-analyses[21][22][23][24] do not confirm this benefit. That said, sodium bicarbonate might prevent contrast-induced acute kidney injury in people with preexisting kidney disease.[25]

Some antacids, which are drugs used to treat heartburn, indigestion, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD),[26][27] contain sodium bicarbonate. However, the specific effect of sodium bicarbonate on these conditions is unclear because many antacids also contain other ingredients, including aluminum hydroxide, calcium carbonate, and magnesium hydroxide, and even other drugs like omeprazole (a proton pump inhibitor). Furthermore, additional evidence is needed to determine whether sodium bicarbonate directly reduces acidity in the stomach.[28]

Sodium bicarbonate is sometimes used in dental care products to help improve dental health by reducing gingivitis and plaque.[29][30][31][32][33][34][35] However, because many such products contain additional ingredients, the direct benefit of sodium bicarbonate is unclear. Furthermore, many studies showing a benefit have been conducted by dental product manufacturers.[30][32][33][35] Meanwhile, some[36][37] but not all[38] randomized controlled trials have shown a direct benefit of chewing sodium-bicarbonate-containing gum on dental health. Further high-quality research is needed to clarify these effects.

Combining beta-alanine with sodium bicarbonate can enhance exercise performance during high-intensity, short-duration activities. Beta-alanine increases muscle carnosine levels, which helps buffer acid in the muscles. This intracellular buffering complements the extracellular buffering action of sodium bicarbonate, which helps maintain pH balance in the blood and muscles by neutralizing excess acid.

The amino acid beta-alanine is a precursor for synthesizing carnosine, a molecule that helps buffer acid in muscles. Daily supplementation with beta-alanine can increase muscle carnosine levels[47] and boost exercise performance during high-intensity, short-duration activities which last between 30 seconds and 10 minutes.[48][49][50][51][52] Current evidence suggests that combining beta-alanine with sodium bicarbonate can further enhance exercise performance during high-intensity, short-duration activities.[53][54]

Studies that have compared transdermal (on the skin) sodium bicarbonate supplements to oral bicarbonate have generally found oral delivery to be better. The results from testing of transdermal bicarbonate have been mixed, both in terms of its ability to enhance exercise performance and its ability to affect systemic acid-base balance.[55][56]

Transdermal sodium bicarbonate supplements are applied as a lotion directly to the skin. Because they bypass the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, transdermal bicarbonate supplements are marketed to have all the advantages of oral bicarbonate without any of the unpleasant GI side effects. However, because transdermal bicarbonate is generally unable to affect the systemic acid-base balance, researchers in one study used a specialized technique to measure local changes in muscle pH after application of the transdermal bicarbonate. Consistent with previous studies, the researchers observed only a marginal change in systemic pH. However, the transdermal bicarbonate caused a significant increase in intramuscular pH, which indicates that it was penetrating into the muscles after application on the skin.[57] This trial was performed in resting participants, so the effect on exercise performance wasn’t tested. These results suggest that by affecting intramuscular pH, transdermal bicarbonate has the potential to affect exercise performance, but more research is needed to determine its efficacy.

Sodium bicarbonate can cause gastrointestinal side effects such as bloating, nausea, and vomiting when taken orally in doses higher than 0.3 grams per kilogram of body weight. Although rare adverse effects have been reported in individual cases, sodium bicarbonate is generally considered safe for oral consumption.

When taken orally, doses of sodium bicarbonate higher than 0.3 grams per kilogram of body weight can increase the risk of gastrointestinal side effects, including bloating, nausea, and vomiting.[5][1]

Although some case studies of individual patients have found adverse effects of sodium bicarbonate, these are rare,[39][40][41] and, in general, sodium bicarbonate is considered safe for consumption when taken orally.[1][42]

Sodium bicarbonate enhances high-intensity exercise performance by buffering hydrogen ion production, which helps maintain blood and muscle pH levels. However, high doses can lead to gastrointestinal side effects due to a reaction with stomach acid that produces carbon dioxide.

Sodium bicarbonate likely improves high-intensity exercise performance by buffering the production of hydrogen ions, preventing a drop in pH in the blood or the muscles.[5][1][43][44][45][46][9]

The gastrointestinal side effects caused by high doses of sodium bicarbonate (bloating, nausea, vomiting, etc.) are probably caused by a reaction between bicarbonate and stomach acid, which releases CO2 in the stomach.[5][1]

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Research Breakdown

How does sodium bicarbonate work?

To understand how sodium bicarbonate works, it’s helpful to first understand the concept of pH.

How pH affects exercise performance

In chemistry, pH is a scale used to grade how acidic or alkaline (basic) a solution is.

A pH of 7.0 is considered neutral (pure water has a pH of 7.0). Anything lower than 7.0 is acidic, and anything above 7.0 is alkaline (1).

The pH level of the human body varies depending on the part of the body. For example, our blood has a pH of about 7.4, while stomach acid is highly acidic, with a pH of 1–3 (1).

Interestingly, the pH of our bodies is tightly regulated, which ensures that they function properly. This regulation is referred to as the acid-base balance and is controlled mainly by our kidneys and lungs (1).

However, certain health conditions and external factors can disrupt this balance. One of these factors is high intensity exercise, also known as anaerobic exercise.

During anaerobic exercise, your body’s demand for oxygen exceeds the available supply. As a result, your muscles cannot rely on oxygen to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), your body’s cellular energy source (2, 3).

Instead, they must switch to a different pathway — the anaerobic pathway — to produce ATP.

While researchers don’t yet fully understand this process, they have determined that a major byproduct of the anaerobic pathway is hydrogen (H+).

Too much hydrogen in the working muscles decreases the pH of your muscles, creating an acidic environment. This leads to the unwanted “burning” sensation we’ve all felt during anaerobic exercises such as sprints and resistance training (2, 3).

Contrary to popular belief, most research no longer points to lactic acid or lactate as the main cause of burning or muscle fatigue. In fact, lactate may help reduce hydrogen molecules in muscle (2, 3).

How sodium bicarbonate helps maintain pH

Sodium bicarbonate has an alkaline pH of 8.4 and may play a role in buffering excess hydrogen during anaerobic exercise (4).

Interestingly, your kidneys produce bicarbonate (HCO3) to help your body maintain proper pH levels. It’s one of the main buffering substrates in your body because it can accept a hydrogen ion, which increases its pH to make it less acidic (5, 6, 7, 8).

During exercise, bicarbonate and other buffering agents work to pull hydrogen out of the working muscle and into the bloodstream, allowing the muscle to return to a less acidic state (5, 6, 7, 8).

Thus, it’s theorized that supplementing with sodium bicarbonate may aid in this process, allowing the muscle to maintain longer bouts of exercise (5, 8).

Summary

Bicarbonate is a natural buffer that is part of your body’s acid-base balance, which maintains proper pH levels. During exercise, it helps clear acid out of muscle cells to restore optimal pH. It’s thought that bicarbonate supplementation may aid this process.

How does sodium bicarbonate affect sports performance?

Scientists have examined how sodium bicarbonate affects exercise performance for more than 80 years (8).

Supplementing with sodium bicarbonate may enhance performance measurements such as speed, power, work capacity, and time to failure (5, 8, 9).

In particular, sodium bicarbonate appears to be beneficial for muscular endurance. One review of studies found that supplementing with sodium bicarbonate significantly increases muscular endurance and performance in both small and large muscle groups (10).

It’s especially beneficial during single and repeated bouts of high intensity exercise that last between 1 and 7 minutes (6, 8, 9, 11).

Additionally, many of its benefits appear to occur near the end of an endurance workout, which may help a person with the final “push” of the exercise.

For example, one study observed a 1.5-second performance improvement in the last 1,000 meters of a 2,000-meter (1.24-mile) rowing event. Because many races are won by just seconds, this can be a significant boost in performance (12).

The results are similar for cycling, sprinting, swimming, and team sports (13, 14, 15, 16, 17).

However, the benefits can vary from person to person. They may also depend on the type of activity and a person’s sex, personal tolerance, and training level (8, 9, 10).

Summary

Sodium bicarbonate may be beneficial in enhancing muscular endurance, especially during high intensity exercise and in the later stages of endurance workouts.

How does it affect interval training?

Interval training is when you alternate between intense and less-intense exercise during a single session.

You can perform intervals during many forms of exercise, such as running, cycling, rowing, swimming, Olympic weightlifting, and CrossFit.

One study in 13 male athletes found a 14% increase in performance during the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test level 2, which tests an athlete’s ability to repeatedly perform anaerobic exercise, after supplementing with sodium bicarbonate (18).

Further, the athletes’ rate of perceived exhaustion was significantly lower than that of the control group (18).

A study in CrossFit participants found improvements in performance, such as increased reps, time to ventilatory threshold, and overall workload. Further, fight gone bad performance — a type of CrossFit interval training — was 3.1% higher than the placebo group (19).

Additionally, a cycling study showed that sodium bicarbonate led to significantly greater time to exhaustion (4.5 minutes) compared to the placebo group (20).

Other studies have also shown that sodium bicarbonate helped increase performance in interval and high intensity training, especially in increasing time to exhaustion and muscular endurance (5, 21, 22, 23, 24).

According to the International Society of Sports Nutrition, sodium bicarbonate supplementation improves performance in muscular endurance activities and high intensity exercises such as cycling, swimming, running, rowing, boxing, judo, karate, taekwondo, and wrestling (5).

Summary

Sodium bicarbonate has been shown to improve muscular endurance and time to exhaustion, which can help improve athletic performance in interval training and high intensity exercise.

Effects of sodium bicarbonate on muscle strength

Sodium bicarbonate may help with muscular strength, but research is mixed.

In one study, experienced weightlifters who took sodium bicarbonate 60 minutes before a workout were able to do 6 more squats in their first of 3 sets. However, there were no differences in bench press repetitions (25).

That said, a recent meta-analysis showed no significant improvements in muscular strength — defined as the amount of weight lifted or force a muscle can produce — after sodium bicarbonate supplementation (10).

Researchers believe sodium bicarbonate plays a limited role in muscular strength due to the short duration and maximal effort required. However, they speculate that it still may prevent a reduction in strength due to fatigue (5).

To date, it appears that sodium bicarbonate plays a bigger role in muscular endurance — how long the muscle can be actively worked — than in the strength of the muscle (5).

Summary

Sodium bicarbonate may play a small role in muscular strength, especially in preventing a reduction of strength from fatigue.

Taking sodium bicarbonate may help enhance your sports performance, especially in high intensity sports and activities.

It works by decreasing the acidity in working muscles to help you exercise longer. Most research suggests that the most effective dose is 0.3 grams per kg taken 60–180 minutes before exercise.

However, some people experience side effects such as vomiting, bloating, and gas. You may be able to reduce these effects by taking sodium bicarbonate with a carbohydrate-rich meal, spreading small doses throughout the day, or taking enteric-coated capsules.

Though sodium bicarbonate may sound promising, it’s a good idea to speak with a healthcare professional to make sure it’s right for you before trying it.

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