Cranberry juice modestly lowers blood pressure in healthy adults when consumed daily, a carefully controlled trial showed.

Systolic and diastolic blood pressure both fell by an average 3 mm Hg with two 8-oz. glasses a day for 8 weeks, Janet Novotny, MD, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Beltsville, Md., and colleagues found.

The effect was significant compared with placebo for diastolic pressure, with a trend for systolic reduction as well, the group reported at the American Heart Association’s High Blood Pressure Research meeting in Washington.

Cranberry juice contains a ‘broad and interesting array’ of the kind of plant flavonoids shown to reduce cardiovascular disease risk in epidemiologic studies, Novotny explained in an interview.

‘If [patients] are trying to reduce blood pressure through diet, low-calorie cranberry juice would be something that would be good and healthful to include in that diet’ as a replacement for less healthy drinks, she told MedPage Today.

The antihypertensive effect may be another reason to recommend cranberry juice in addition to its urinary tract benefits, commented Rachel Johnson, PhD, RD, chair of the American Heart Association’s nutrition committee.

The use of a low-calorie cranberry juice may have been an important factor, she explained in an interview with MedPage Today.

‘Cranberries on […]