Superior nitrate density — 9× more than beetroot
Oxystorm® from Amaranthus dubius provides approximately 9× more dietary nitrate per gram than beetroot extract, enabling effective nitrate delivery at much lower inclusion doses in formulas. This allows smaller capsule sizes, better taste profiles (Amaranthus is less earthy than beetroot), and superior formulator flexibility compared to beetroot-based nitrate ingredients.
Nitric oxide production and vasodilation
Dietary nitrate from Oxystorm® is reduced to nitrite by oral bacteria and further to NO in hypoxic tissues — producing sustained vasodilation, improved endothelial function, and enhanced oxygen delivery to working muscle. These NO-mediated effects improve exercise performance, reduce the oxygen cost of exercise, and support cardiovascular health through mechanisms distinct from (and complementary to) L-arginine/L-citrulline NO precursors.
Blood pressure support
The dietary nitrate-nitrite-NO pathway provides one of the most robustly demonstrated blood pressure-lowering mechanisms in nutritional science. Meta-analyses of multiple RCTs confirm inorganic dietary nitrate (from beetroot, spinach, and other leafy greens) produces clinically meaningful reductions in blood pressure (2–5 mmHg systolic) — the same magnitude as some antihypertensive drugs at lower doses.
Sexual health and blood flow
Oxystorm® is positioned for sexual health applications in PLT's catalog — recognizing that NO-mediated vasodilation in penile tissue is the same mechanism targeted by PDE5 inhibitors (Viagra, Cialis), but through an upstream nitrate-based pathway that increases the substrate available for NO synthesis rather than inhibiting its degradation.
Nitrate-nitrite-NO enterosalivary circulation
Dietary nitrate from Oxystorm® is absorbed in the small intestine and concentrated in salivary glands (~10× plasma levels). Oral bacteria reduce salivary nitrate to nitrite via bacterial nitrate reductases — a symbiotic relationship essential for NO production from dietary nitrate. Swallowed nitrite is absorbed and reduced to NO in hypoxic tissues (vascular endothelium, ischemic muscle) by deoxyhemoglobin, xanthine oxidoreductase, and other reductases. This enterosalivary cycling provides sustained plasma nitrite elevation and NO availability for 2–6 hours after ingestion.
Clinical study comparing Oxystorm® red spinach extract vs. placebo for plasma nitrate/nitrite elevation, exercise performance, and blood pressure.
Healthy active adults. Placebo-controlled crossover design.
Oxystorm® produced significantly greater plasma nitrate/nitrite elevation vs. placebo, improved exercise performance metrics, and reduced blood pressure vs. control. Superior NO production vs. equivalent beetroot dose confirmed. Well-tolerated; no significant GI side effects.