L-Citrulline DL-Malate in BloodPril: Benefits, Dosage and Safety

This is the first and largest ingredient in BloodPril. The strip above shows where it sits on the label and how it compares with study doses. The full ingredients page shows how it fits with the two arginine forms.

L-citrulline is an amino acid your body makes on its own. It is not used to build protein. Instead, it works as a go-between in two cycles, one that clears waste nitrogen and one that makes nitric oxide.

Its name comes from Citrullus, the watermelon plant, where it was first found. Watermelon is still the richest common food source.

Malate is a salt form of malic acid, the tart acid in apples. Your cells already use it to make energy. The DL on the label means both mirror-image forms of malate are present, which is common in made forms of the compound.

The difference is weight. Plain L-citrulline is all citrulline. Citrulline malate shares its weight with malic acid, so the same number of milligrams holds less citrulline.

Sports powders often use the malate form. The blood pressure reviews describe L-citrulline itself. When you compare a product with research, check which form the study used.

The research is early and small. A 2018 review pooled small trials of L-citrulline at gram doses a day (Mirenayat et al., 2018). The authors asked for larger and longer studies before anyone draws firm conclusions.

A 2019 review looked at arginine and citrulline together (Khalaf et al., 2019). Some trials showed modest blood pressure drops at gram doses. Results varied from study to study, and long-term data were limited.

So citrulline is a reasonable ingredient to study, but not a proven answer. It does not replace medicine or the habits with strong evidence behind them.

Citrulline is a smarter route to arginine. Arginine taken by mouth is partly used up in the gut and liver. Citrulline passes through and the kidneys turn it into arginine.

In healthy volunteers, oral L-citrulline raised blood arginine more efficiently than the same amount of oral L-arginine (Schwedhelm et al., 2008). That study measured blood levels, not blood pressure, so it explains the idea but does not prove a health effect.

BloodPril uses both, with citrulline first. Read the L-arginine HCL page for the arginine side, or the full comparison in L-citrulline vs L-arginine.

Each capsule holds at least 167 mg. The label prints only the 500 mg blend total, but blend parts must be listed by weight, heaviest first (21 CFR 101.36). As the first of three parts, citrulline malate must be at least a third of the blend.

It also has to be less than the whole 500 mg, since two other ingredients share the space. Part of the weight is malate, so the citrulline itself is lower than these figures.

L-citrulline is possibly safe for short-term use (WebMD, L-citrulline). The common complaints with amino acids like it are stomach upset, bloating and loose stools. Taking each capsule with the full 8 oz glass of water the label asks for is a sensible start.

The bigger issue is how it may add to medicines. Citrulline might lower blood pressure, so it can stack with drugs that do the same.

A reading above 180/120 with chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, numbness, weakness, vision change or trouble speaking is an emergency. Call 911 (AHA, Blood pressure readings). Do not wait to see whether a supplement helps.

Citrulline malate leads the BloodPril blend, but one capsule holds well under a gram of it. The trials that showed small blood pressure changes used several grams of citrulline a day. No trial has tested BloodPril itself.

The capsule is still a simple daily habit. Pair it with the steps that have strong evidence, such as the DASH eating plan (NHLBI, DASH eating plan), and track your numbers with a validated cuff. Our home blood pressure guide shows how.