Vitamin B2 Lowers High Blood Pressure

KAISERAUGST, SwitzerlandVitamin B2 reduced high blood pressure in a recent study from the Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) (Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2011 Jul). The study showed vitamin B2 can successfully lower blood pressure within genetically at-risk groups, to an extent that could cut the risk of stroke death by as much as 30 percent.

In this study, which followed 83 patients over a four year period, vitamin B2 was so effective for those with the relevant genetic factor, that it would take around 10 kilos of weight loss, or an exercise regime burning 4,200 calories per week, to achieve a comparable reduction in blood pressure according to co-researcher, Helene McNulty, professor of Nutritional Science at the University of Ulster.

Vitamin B2 is a micronutrient that is key to good health. It is mainly found in milk and dairy products, as well as in fortified foods such as breakfast cereals. Vitamin B2 was found to reduce blood pressure in a previous study that researched patients with the MTHFR 677 TT genotype.

 Increasing vitamin B2 intakes through improved diet, fortified foods or supplements could lower blood pressure in the 10 percent of the population with the relevant genetic factor without causing harm to those who do not have it," McNulty said. "These findings offer us an exciting non-drug treatment for high blood pressure."