The New Antihypertensive – Beetroot Juice!

Before the arrival of modern antihypertensive drugs, s odium nitrite, which acts to relax the smooth muscles - especially those of the small blood vessels - was used in the treatment of high blood pressure. It’s known that diets rich in fruits and vegetables reduce blood pressure, and many of them are rich in nitrites. So could dietary nitrites be a source of nitric oxide, one of the chief agents of small blood vessel relaxation?

British researchers, reporting in the journal Hypertension, have studied the effects of a potent source of dietary nitrate (which converts to nitrite in the mouth, due to the presence of saliva) – beetroot juice. Healthy volunteers’ blood pressure was measured 3 hours after drinking 500 mL (just over 2 cups-full) of beetroot juice. They had, on average, 10 mmHg lower blood pressure; moreover, the magnitude of the effect correlated with the peak levels of plasma nitrite.

Now all we need is a couple of good randomized double-blind controlled studies of beetroot juice vs. placebo (matching the color and taste, of course), and we may well have a brand new approach to the treatment of high blood pressure. Of course dose, and frequency of administration, and the taste factor will have to be worked out. And who knows what the side effects may be (apart from red urine in some people)? However, if in doubt, just eat lots of veggies – they’re bound to contain a fair amount of nitrates.