Pomegranate Juice Lowers Blood Pressure in 2 Weeks

July 13, 2009 - PRLog -- A new trial [1] has found that after drinking pure pomegranate juice for just two weeks, the majority of healthy volunteers experienced a lowering of systolic blood pressure.

Previous studies on pomegranate juice and its effects on blood pressure have taken place over a longer time period, but this study was designed to show the potency of this super juice.   The study found that 69% of participants experienced a decrease in systolic blood pressure at some point during the intervention, with 57% experiencing a consistent decrease [2]. The study also found that 89% displayed an increased antioxidant capacity in their urine after 14 days of drinking Pomegreat Pure [3], a new 100% pure pomegranate juice.

The study was conducted by Queen Margaret University’s fourth year nutrition students Kirsty Davis and Fiona Mounter and was supervised by Dr. Emad Al-Dujaili, Senior Lecturer in Biochemistry who said: “Consumption of the Pomegreat Pure juice has a potential in reducing systolic blood pressure. In a pilot study in healthy volunteers, about 70% of those who consumed half a litre of the juice for 2 weeks showed a reduction in their systolic blood pressure by 3-7mm Hg."

The students secured samples of Pomegreat Pure to conduct the trial, which required volunteers to drink 500ml of the juice a day.  Blood pressure was taken alongside other indicators like weight, waist ratio and body mass index throughout the trial.  It is thought that the blood pressure lowering benefits of pomegranates are due to the direct action of its active phenolic compounds plus the juice’s superior antioxidant properties [4] which are three times greater than cranberry juice, red wine and green tea [5].

The blood pressure trial is the first using Pomegreat to take place under Dr. Al-Dujaili’s supervision and looks set be the first of a number of trials to test the juice on a range of health issues.

Further trials can be tracked on the Pomegreat website at www.pomegreat.com.

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For further information about the trial or Pomegreat, please contact Vicky Stoakes at Indigo Cow PR on 01273 773 516 / Vicky@indigocow.com

Notes to editors

[1] 19 healthy volunteers completed the trial in two weeks and blood pressure, BMI and waist circumference were tracked alongside total phenolic content in urine and saliva before and after the intervention and antioxidant capacity of urine and saliva before and after the intervention

[2] For each heartbeat, blood pressure varies between systolic and diastolic pressures. Systolic pressure is peak pressure in the arteries, which occurs near the end of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are contracting. Diastolic pressure is minimum pressure in the arteries, which occurs near the beginning of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are filled with blood.

[3] Pomegreat Pure is the newest addition to the Pomegreat range of juice drinks and is available in a 500ml bottle with an RRP of £3.29. The juice can be found in the chiller cabinet of all Waitrose stores, many independent stores and health food retailers.  It contains 100% pure pomegranate juice.

[4] Aviram et al 2000; Gil et al 2000.  Oxidative stress is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease as reactive oxygen species contribute to endothelium-dependent contraction and to increased vascular resistance.  The high antioxidant capacity of pomegranate juice could neutralize oxidative damage and restore endothelial function and therefore reduce blood pressure, Kitiyakara and Wilcox 1998.

[5] Aviram et al, 2002. The Lipid Research Laboratory, Technion Faculty of Medicine, The
Rappaport Family Institute for Research in the Medical Sciences and Rambam Medical Center, Haifa, Israel.

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