Blood pressure naturally rises and falls during the day, but if it remains high for an extended period, it can harm your heart and create health concerns. Hypertension, commonly known as high blood pressure, is a condition in which blood pressure is greater than usual. Heart disease and stroke are the major causes of mortality in the United States, and hypertension increases the risk of both.
Hypertension was a major or contributing cause of over half a million fatalities in the United States in 2018. High blood pressure is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes, and it is the leading cause of mortality.
How Eating Yogurt Can Help Tackle High Blood Pressure
Diet has long been recommended as a way to decrease blood pressure, and health-related diets are highly popular.
Diet is an important aspect of one’s life as it affects not only the GI but also the whole body which includes Blood Pressure also. Those who suffer from High BP must not go for the items with higher sodium as it can lead to an increase in blood pressure in a short span. The experts have carried out a survey where it is found that on such patients with hypertension the yogurt can be much beneficial in keeping the GI system maintained and reduce the overall blood pressure.
There are various practices to control and lower blood pressure and one of the many unpopular findings is that eating yogurt can help lower blood pressure. According to a recent study done by an international team of experts, including academics from the University of Maine, yogurt intake can help decrease blood pressure in older individuals with high levels.
The study, which was published in the International Dairy Journal, was performed by Alexandra Wade of the University of South Australia and UMaine academics Benjamin Guenther, Fayez Ahmed, and Merrill “Pete” Elias, and represents a novel finding in the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS).
The MSLS team looked into the link between yogurt intake and blood pressure in older individuals with and without hypertension. The Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study provided cross-sectional data for 915 people (average age 62.1 years). About 62 percent of the people in the study had high blood pressure, which was classified as 140/90 mmHg.
Statistical studies indicated that those with high blood pressure who ate yogurt had lower systolic blood pressure, which was statistically significant. According to the researchers, the MSLS study was the first to investigate whether yogurt lowers blood pressure in those with normal blood pressure. In people with normal blood pressure, there was no difference when they ate yogurt. Age, gender, education, diabetes, body mass index, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, exercise, and other dietary factors all influenced blood pressure levels, thus the research was done before and after considering this.
Previous MSLS research has found a link between a Mediterranean diet and improved cognitive function, as well as a link between various dairy products and reduced blood pressure in those who have never had a stroke or renal illness. MSLS, which focused on aging, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and cognitive function, was founded by Elias in 1974 at Syracuse University and continued for almost 40 years at the University of Maine.
It has gathered longitudinal and cross-sectional data for 1,000 people from early adulthood to old age, as well as cross-sectional data for more than 2,400 people who were recruited in central New York and tracked across the United States. There are many other scientists who are doing research and we can expect many more insights to be revealed in the coming years. The future seems promising.
