Beetroot Juice Cuts Seniors' Blood Pressure in 2 Weeks
SkimNews Take
The age‑specific response suggests earlier beetroot trials on younger participants likely underestimated this intervention's clinical value, while tying its efficacy to oral microbiome changes that appear to vary systematically with age.
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- University of Exeter researchers ran a two‑week crossover trial where participants drank nitrate‑rich beetroot juice or a nitrate‑free placebo.
- Older adults (n=36, age 60‑70) who consumed beetroot juice saw a statistically significant drop in systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
- Younger adults (n=39, age <30) showed no blood pressure change despite similar beetroot juice consumption.
- Beetroot juice altered the oral microbiome of older participants, increasing nitrate‑reducing bacteria that boost nitric‑oxide production.
- The study was published in Free Radical Biology and Medicine and funded by a BBSRC Industrial Partnership Award.
Why it matters: Older adults, including the 36 seniors in the trial, gain a simple, inexpensive dietary tool that lowers blood pressure within two weeks, providing a non‑drug alternative for hypertension management.
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