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Nutrition In high blood pressure olive oil and vegetables help
For some time research has shown that olive oil and the Mediterranean diet can strengthen the cardiovascular system and protect it against many diseases. According to a study, olive oil should also be able to reduce blood pressure in high blood pressure. However, it requires a substantial combination, so that the effect can unfold.
Healthy Mediterranean cuisine
The Mediterranean cuisine has long been in a good reputation ahead. Even older studies have already shown that this diet can help to better protect against heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular disease. It could also contribute to the prevention of type 2 diabetes.
Olive oil with vegetables lowers blood pressure (Image: cut / fotolia.com) .
Although there was no evidence, many people believed that this was mainly or even exclusively due to the use of olive oil in the Mediterranean, which is said to lower blood pressure. But British researchers from King's College London now show that the olive oil for the hypotensive effect still needs a competitor, such as lettuce.
Important nitro-fatty acids are formed
When the unsaturated fatty acids of the oil hit nitrate-containing vegetables, so-called nitro-fatty acids are formed. These are substances that can block an enzyme that plays a role in the development of blood pressure. The team led by Philipp Eaton has investigated in experiments with genetically modified mice whether the effect is sufficient to positively influence the cardiovascular system and to lower blood pressure.
The animals bred specifically for the study formed a functional form of the enzyme in their bodies which, however, can not be blocked by nitro-fatty acids. Scientists artificially induced hypertension in these mice as well as those in the control group. They also fed the rodents with Nitro-enriched feed that was comparable in value to Mediterranean diet.
Combination of olive oil and nitrate-rich vegetables
The researchers then regularly checked the blood pressure of the animals and it was found that the nitro fatty acids significantly lowered the blood pressure of the unchanged mice. By contrast, the values for the genetically modified mice remained high. As the scientists write in the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences", the blood pressure-lowering effect based on the blocking of the enzyme by nitro-fatty acids. The results therefore suggest that it is the combination of oil and nitrate-rich vegetables that makes the Mediterranean diet so healthy. However, a similar effect may be observed when nuts or avocados hit spinach, celery or carrots.
Incidentally, cold-pressed oils should not be used for frying or heated too high, as high temperatures not only change the taste but also destroy important ingredients of the oil. (sb, ad)