The nitrate content of beetroot juice is the underlying cause of its blood pressure lowering benefits, research from Queen Mary University of London reveals.
The study, published online in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension, found that blood pressure was lowered within 24 hours in people who took nitrate tablets, and people who drank beetroot juice.
The research will be welcome news to people with high blood pressure who might now be able to use a new ‘natural’ approach to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease (including stroke and heart attacks) – the world’s biggest killer.
Study author Amrita Ahluwalia, Professor of Vascular Biology at Queen Mary’s William Harvey Research Institute, said the investigation was able to demonstrate that the nitrate found in beetroot juice was the cause of its beneficial effects upon cardiovascular health by increasing the levels of the gas nitric oxide in the circulation
Professor Ahluwalia said. “We gave inorganic nitrate capsules or beetroot juice to healthy volunteers and compared their blood pressure responses and the biochemical changes occurring in the circulation.
hi,
In addition to NO3 , there could be other constituents which affect Blood Pressure? how did they emiminate the effect of these constituents???
Is this more voo doo science. Someone is always coming out with something which always not readily available on the market. Just read the other day fruitcose (sugar additive in soda pop: Coke, Pepsi, etc.) drives up human blood pressure (BP). Today, I’m reading that the juice in beets or beetroots lowers BP. I’ll try it and see what my doctor says about it. More likely than not, he’s not going to take me off BP therapy. But, we’ll try it first and see what happens… Oh, I’ll get back to you in about ten weeks with a status report.
I am interested what is the root of beet except the beet itself.
I believe in natural remedies
I can’t tolerate some medications
Sincerely
Therese Vidoni
Can eating beets have the same effect as the beetroot juice
I approved!!! having tested it in the past. it actually worked in lowering my HBP drastically
Is beet juice the same as beetroot?
Based on the articles in the papers, I just started drinking 250ml per day of beetroot juice yesterday. First, the stuff is expensive – $6+ dollars per 500ml bottle and is not readily available (I managed to find it in Whole Foods). Secondly, although I’m not a fussy eater, the juice does not have a particularly pleasant taste – consequently, I just gulp it down in one go. Third, as the articles warned, your urine and faeces can go purple while drinking beet juice (they did for me).
It’s too early to tell yet whether it has reduced my blood pressure – we’ll see. Currently, I take benicar and amlopidene (probably misspelt the last one). It would be nice if there were a “natural” alternative to such medicines.