According to medical experts, this reduction on a public health level could work out to a 10 per cent reduction in the number of deaths from heart disease. It should be noted that the significant reduction was only made after drinking a single dose of beetroot juice and researchers have speculated the improvement could be more dramatic if the participants were drinking it continually.
It was a small study that consisted of 15 men and 15 women who were split into two groups. One group was given a beverage made up of three quarters beetroot juice and one quarter apple juice, and the other was given a placebo beverage to drink. Six hours after consuming the beetroot juice the men and women experienced a decrease in their blood pressure. Men had the best response to the beverage, reducing their blood pressure by an average of 4.7 points each.
The study is the second to suggest that beetroot juice has blood pressure lowering potential. The British Journal of Nutrition published results of a study that was carried out on 19 patients in March this year, which showed blood pressure to decrease only three hours after the beverage was consumed.
Beetroots have long been known to have heart health-boosting properties. They are full of vitamin C, vitamin K, polyphenols and fiber, and the researchers believe it is the nitrate content in beetroot that is responsible for the dramatic decrease in blood pressure levels. Regardless of what it is, there certainly does seem to be a positive correlation between blood pressure, and beetroot and the vegetable is a valuable source of potassium, magnesium and iron, leading some to put it into the “super” food group. If you are taking medication to manage your blood pressure, swallowing them with some beetroot juice could just enhance the effects. Doctors at clinics in Las Vegas can help you with treatment options.