Experts have identified six vegetables that could help older adults reduce their blood pressure, following a study from the University of Exeter. The research found that beetroot juice lowered blood pressure in people over 60 by altering bacteria in the mouth.
High blood pressure is a risk factor for heart attacks and strokes, according to the NHS. Dietary nitrates, found in vegetables like beetroot, rocket, spinach, kale, celery, and lettuce, are converted into nitric oxide, which relaxes and widens blood vessels.
The study involved 39 adults under 30 and 36 people in their 60s and 70s. Each group consumed beetroot juice for two weeks, then a placebo after a break. In older participants, blood pressure decreased after the nitrate-rich juice, and their oral microbiome shifted to include more beneficial bacteria.
Professor Anni Vanhatalo, lead author, said: 'Encouraging older adults to consume more nitrate-rich vegetables could have significant long term health benefits.' Co-author Professor Andy Jones added that the findings 'pave the way for larger studies.'
The research was published in the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine.
