Published in Primary Care Expert Opinion / Commentary · February 25, 2015 Written by Jamie Harvie PE Written by Nancy Sudak MD Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical widely used in plastic bottles, the lining of canned foods, paper receipts, dental amalgams, and other products. Exposure is ubiquitous, and BPA is most well-known for its […]
Recently, the debate over the role of sugar, specifically fructose, in hypertension has started to intensify. In a recent article published in the British Medical Journal’s Open Heart, researchers reviewed both epidemiological and experimental studies regarding the role of processed foods in hypertension and found evidence that it is the added sugar in these foods that […]
The Many Health Benefits of Cinnamon Cinnamon is a powerful spice that has been used medicinally around the world for thousands of years. It is still used daily in many cultures because of its widespread health benefits, not to mention its distinctly sweet, warming taste and ease of use in recipes. According to researchers, out of twenty-six […]
Daily consumption of the juice significantly lowered blood pressure in hypertensive patients Feb. 16, 2015 5:04 p.m. ET Daily consumption of beetroot juice for four weeks significantly lowered blood pressure in hypertensive patients compared with a placebo juice, according to a report in the February issue of Hypertension. Beetroot juice also helped to relax arteries […]
February 06, 2015 Journal of the American College of Cardiology TAKE-HOME MESSAGE In this large prospective study, the authors followed young and middle-aged adults with hypertension long term for development of complications. Individuals with isolated systolic hypertension had higher risk for cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease–related mortality compared with patients with isolated diastolic hypertension […]
SUGAR, NOT SALT, AS THE MAIN CAUSE OF HYPERTENSION? It is well known that reducing sodium intake for some individuals can lead to a significant reduction in blood pressure. However, some debate exists as to whether reducing sodium on the population level would have any benefit. Further, there are questions about what role sodium might […]
Cocoa flavanol consumption improves cognitive function, blood pressure control, and metabolic profile in elderly subjects: the Cocoa, Cognition, and Aging (CoCoA) Study—a randomized controlled trial American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 01/05/2015 Clinical Article Mastroiacovo D, et al. – This dietary intervention study provides evidence that regular cocoa flavanol (CF) consumption can reduce some measures of […]
RESEARCH · December 08, 2014 TAKE-HOME MESSAGE In a randomized, crossover trial, researchers evaluated 60 participants aged ≥60 years to determine the association of bisphenol A (BPA) with blood pressure and heart rate. Drinking canned beverages was associated with an increase in urinary BPA concentration and systolic blood pressure when compared with drinking glass-bottled beverages. […]
Meta-analysis of the effect and safety of berberine in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hyperlipemia and hypertension Journal of Ethnopharmacology , 12/12/2014 Lan J, et al. – This study indicates that berberine has comparable therapeutic effect on Type 2 DM, hyperlipidemia and hypertension with no serious side effect. Considering the relatively low cost […]
by Salynn Boyles Contributing Writer, MedPage Today Dietary efforts to control high blood pressure have historically focused on limiting sodium, but the added sugar in processed foods may be a more important contributor to hypertension than added salt, according to two researchers who study the impact of the foods we eat on cardiovascular risk. In […]
Effect of the natural sweetener, steviol glycoside, on cardiovascular risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, 11/26/2014 Evidence Based Medicine Review Article Onakpoya IJ, et al. – The objective of this systematic review was to critically appraise and evaluate the evidence for effectiveness of steviol glycosides […]
RESEARCH · November 24, 2014 TAKE-HOME MESSAGE In this double-blind, placebo-controlled study, researchers randomized 68 patients with hypertension to receive daily dietary nitrate or placebo to determine effects on blood pressure. Dietary nitrate significantly reduced clinic, ambulatory, and home blood pressure over a 4-week period (P < .001). There was no significant evidence of tachyphylaxis. […]
Blood Press Monit. 2014 Oct 27. [Epub ahead of print] The effect of vitamin D supplementation on blood pressure in patients with elevated blood pressure and vitamin D deficiency: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Mozaffari-Khosravi H, Loloei S, Mirjalili MR, Barzegar K. Abstract OBJECTIVES: The present evidence indicates a reverse correlation between vitamin D status […]
JACC – Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 10/22/2014 Clinical Article Gang L, et al. – The authors undertook a meta–analysis of randomized controlled trials to determine changes in systolic and diastolic BP due to the intake black and green tea. The meta–analysis showed that long–term (≥12 weeks) ingestion of a tea (green and […]
Advances in Nutrition: An International Review Journal, 09/29/2014 Review Article Burton–Freeman BM, et al. – In this study, authors want to compare the clinical evidence of tomato intake and lycopene supplementation on cardiovascular risk factors. With the exception of blood pressure management where lycopene supplementation was favored, tomato intake provided more favorable results on cardiovascular […]
Hypertension, 09/26/2014 Clinical Article Scragg R, et al. – This study aims to determine whether long–term high–dose vitamin D taken for 18 months lowers BP. Long–term vitamin D supplementation, which increased mean 25–hydroxyvitamin D3 concentration >100 nmol/L for 18 months, had no effect on systolic or diastolic BP in predominantly white, healthy adults without severe […]
News from the: European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2014 Heartwire Marlene Busko September 10, 2014 BARCELONA, SPAIN — Compared with children of normal weight, obese girls were 5.9 times more likely to have hypertension and obese boys were 4.3 times more likely to have hypertension, in a new study[1]. Even being overweight upped the […]
Int J Prev Med. 2014 Oct;5(10):1239-46. The effects of probiotic supplementation on markers of blood lipids, and blood pressure in patients with prediabetes: a randomized clinical trial. Mahboobi S, Iraj B, Maghsoudi Z, Feizi A, Ghiasvand R, Askari G, Maayeshi N. Abstract BACKGROUND: Prediabetes is a high-risk condition for type 2 diabetes mellitus. The growing […]
MedPageToday.com Published: Sep 2, 2014 By Nancy Walsh, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today Action Points Normotensive participants were followed for a median of 7 years for the development of hypertension (systolic blood pressure) in order to determine the relationship of fat distribution with incident hypertension. Increased visceral adiposity, as determined by imaging studies, but not […]