People who consume beneficial bacteria – whether they eat foods such as yogurt, or take probiotic supplements –ß may modestly reduce their blood pressure, a new study suggests.
An analysis done by researchers in Australia found people who took probiotics reduced their systolic blood pressure (the top number in a reading) by an average of 3.56 millimeters of mercury, and their diastolic blood pressure (the second number) by an average of 2.38 millimeters of mercury. People needed to consume probiotics for at least eight weeks to see improvements in blood pressure.
The researcher also said that regular consumption of probiotics can be part of a healthy lifestyle to help reduce high blood pressure.
There is still a lot of work that needs to be done to identify which probiotic strains are best for reducing blood pressure. The findings are published online last July 21 in the journal Hypertension.
It’s not clear exactly how these bacteria might lower blood pressure, the researchers said. One possibility is that probiotics may help improve total and LDL cholesterol levels.
Another theory is that a healthy community of gut bacteria may help to regulate hormones involved in controlling blood pressure and fluid balance in the body.
