One out of every three adults has high blood pressure (hypertension), yet only about half of them have their blood pressure under control. Another one out of three adults has prehypertension, which means that they are on their well on their way to joining the first group. With two-thirds of American adults suffering from hypertension or prehypertension, the search is on for effective ways to lower blood pressure.
A recent systematic review and meta-analysis published in the American Medical Association journal Hypertension found that probiotics are an effective means of lowering blood pressure. The researchers analyzed nine studies that included 543 participants and found that probiotic consumption lowered systolic blood pressure by 3.56 and diastolic blood pressure by 2.38 mm Hg when compared to those adults who did not take probiotics.
The blood pressure lowering effects were even stronger in people taking higher doses of probiotics and when they were taken for a period of at least eight weeks. They also found greater effect from consuming multiple rather than single strains of probiotics. These findings suggest that taking a high-dose, multi-strain probiotic for a longer duration is more effective at lowering blood pressure.
“We believe probiotics might help lower blood pressure by having other positive effects on health, including improving total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, cholesterol; reducing blood glucose and insulin resistance; and by helping to regulate the hormone system that regulates blood pressure and fluid balance,” stated Jing Sun, PhD, lead researcher.
The reduction of blood pressure in this analysis, although modest, is similar to that found in another analysis of salt reduction of 2,000 mg daily. Even modest blood pressure reductions are beneficial, however, and have been associated with a 22 percent reduced risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack, or stroke.
The benefits of probiotics for conditions outside the gut are growing at a rapid pace. This new analysis is excellent evidence that what happens in your gut affects the rest of your body. Keep taking your probiotics.