Hibiscus Tea Significantly Lowers Blood Pressure

Video: Hibiscus Tea Significantly Lowers Blood Pressure

Video: Hibiscus Tea Significantly Lowers Blood Pressure
Video: Hibiscus Tea Lowers Blood Pressure 2024, November
Hibiscus Tea Significantly Lowers Blood Pressure
Hibiscus Tea Significantly Lowers Blood Pressure
Anonim

Drinking hibiscus tea can significantly lower blood pressure among people at increased risk for cardiovascular and kidney disease, according to a study presented at the annual conference of the American Heart Association.

High blood pressure is a dangerous health condition that triples the risk of heart failure and is the cause of 60% of all heart attacks. The condition is very common in the developed world; one in three people in the UK suffers from high blood pressure.

Researcher Diane McKay and colleagues conducted a study among 65 people between the ages of 30 and 70 with high blood pressure levels, which put them at increased risk for kidney disease, heart attack and stroke. Study participants were required to drink hibiscus tea or placebo three times a day for six weeks.

Heart attack
Heart attack

At the end of the study, blood pressure levels fell by an average of 7.2% in the hibiscus drinker group, compared with only 1.3% in the placebo group. Some patients in the hibiscus tea group actually had a 13.2% drop in blood pressure.

"Hibiscus is the most promising herb for treating blood pressure," says alternative medicine expert Andrew Well. "Studies have found that people who drink two cups of hibiscus tea a day for four weeks have lowered their blood pressure by 12% - results similar to those for regular blood pressure treatment."

Hibiscus
Hibiscus

Scientists do not know exactly what compounds in hibiscus contribute to its protective action, but these flowers are known to contain chemicals known as anthocyanins (anthocyanins), which improve the functioning of blood vessels and strengthen the collagen protein, which helps create the structure of cells and tissues, including blood vessels.

Anthocyanins and other components of hibiscus tea are also known to function as antioxidants, cleansing the body of dangerous free radicals that are associated with heart disease, cancer and the symptoms of aging.

Drinks made or flavored with hibiscus flowers are very popular in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean.

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