Research conducted by the University of Ulster and published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, reveals a new link between vitamin B2 and curbing high blood pressure.
Around 10% of the UK population has a specific genetic factor which can lead to high blood pressure. The new study from the Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) reveals that vitamin B2 can successfully lower blood pressure within this genetically at-risk group, to an extent that could cut the risk of stroke death by as much as 30%.
High blood pressure is the leading cause of stroke and heart disease, and is the leading risk factor for death worldwide. In this study, which followed 83 patients over a four year period, vitamin B2 was so effective for those with the relevant genetic factor, that it would take around 10 kilos of weight loss, or an exercise regime burning 4,200 calories per week, to achieve a comparable reduction in blood pressure.
Co-investigator, Professor Helene McNulty, professor of nutritional science at the University of Ulster, commented:“Increasing vitamin B2 intakes through improved diet, fortified foods or supplements could lower blood pressure in the 10% of the population with the relevant genetic factor without causing harm to those who do not have it. These findings offer us an exciting non-drug treatment for high blood pressure.”
