Vitamin C Controls Blood Pressure - Study
A recent study of young adult women has found vitamin C is effective in maintaining a healthy blood pressure.
In the study, published recently in the Nutrition Journal, there were 242 black and white women between the ages of 18 and 21 years old with normal blood pressure and who had participated in the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study. The participants entered the trial study when they were 8 to 11 years of age and for 10 years their plasma levels of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and blood pressure were monitored.
After 10 years, the researchers found that women with the highest levels of ascorbic acid had a decline of about 4.66 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure and 6.04 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure compared with women with the lowest ascorbic acid levels. The difference held true even after researchers allowed for differences in body mass, race, education levels, dietary fat and sodium intake.
The researchers point out the women with lowest levels of plasma ascorbic acid likely consumed average amounts of fruits, vegetables, and fortified foods. However, those with the highest plasma ascorbic levels likely ate diets rich in fruits and vegetables or took multivitamins or vitamin C supplements.
