GNLD News
Vitamin C can help to lower blood pressure!
An exciting study recently published in The Lancet suggests that vitamin C may play a role in controlling blood pressure.* Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine and the Linus Pauling Institute gave a group of volunteers with mild to moderate hypertension 500 mg of vitamin C daily. After only one month, the average decrease in blood pressure was 9.1%, nearly as effective as hypertension medication! The researchers theorize that vitamin C may improve the body’s ability to synthesize nitric oxide, which plays an important role in keeping blood vessels relaxed. 500 mg of vitamin C daily is universally considered as a safe amount, yet most people do not get that much on a regular basis. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that has many benefits for everyone, and supplementation is an excellent way to obtain an optimum amount on a daily basis. For those who are at risk for hypertension, see your doctor to discuss how nutritional supplements may best fit your needs.
REFERENCE: Duffy, S. J., Gokce, N., Holbrook, M., Huang, A., Frei, B., Keaney, J. F. Jr, Vita, J. A., Treatment of hypertension with ascorbic acid. The Lancet, Volume 354, Number 9195, December 1999