Oct. 25, 2010 -- A dose of baking soda may add a little fizz to the performance of tennis players, a new study says.

Scientists at the National Taiwan College of Physical Education conducted a small study to test whether a tiny amount of sodium bicarbonate -- more commonly known as baking soda -- helped tennis players do more than just take the smell out of their shoes.

It seemed to help performance, researchers say in the study, published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.

“We found that sodium bicarbonate supplementation can prevent the fatigue-induced decline in skilled tennis performance seen during matches,” Chen-Kang Chang, head of the Taiwanese research team, says in a news release. “The service and forehand ground stroke consistency was maintained” after a simulated match in a trial in which sodium bicarbonate was used.