Green tea improves cardiovascular function in hypertensive people

Green tea is linked to a wide variety of health benefits, including a healthy cardiovascular system. This was confirmed by a study, published in the Journal of Hypertension, which concluded that treatment with green tea can help restore and maintain healthy cardiovascular function in individuals with hypertension.

• The researchers induced hypertension in rats by administering N-nitro-L-arginine-methyl-ester (L-NAME), a nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, orally for two weeks.
• After the first week of treatment with L-NAME, the animals were given green tea for a week. The researchers noted a number of factors, such as blood pressure, heart rate, baroreflex sensitivity, renal sympathetic nerve activity, and vascular and systemic oxidative stress after the treatment period.
• The treatment with green tea was found to have reduced hypertension in the treated animals. A decrease in renal sympathetic nerve activity and improvements in arterial baroreceptor function and vascular and systemic oxidative stress were also noted.

The researchers concluded that short-term treatment with green tea can help improve cardiovascular function in hypertensive models.

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Journal Reference:

Garcia ML, Pontes RB, Nishi EE, Ibuki FK, Oliveira V, Sawaya AC, Carvalho PO, Nogueira FN, Franco MDC, Campos RR, et al. The antioxidant effects of green tea reduces blood pressure and sympathoexcitation in an experimental model of hypertension. Journal of Hypertension. February 2017;35(2):348–354. DOI: 10.1097/hjh.0000000000001149