Beetroot juice for two weeks, twice a day can bring down blood pressure in older adults

A simple, easy-to-make beetroot juice, twice a day for two weeks can lower down the blood pressure in older adults, a study has found out.

However, the juice must be in its concentrated form for its full effects to show up in the body, the study based in the University of Exeter observed.

The nitrate-rich juice modified the oral bacteria in these older adults which further helped their blood vessels to get relaxed.

The study published in the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine is the largest of its kind to examine how dietary nitrate can alter the bacterial growth in the mouth.

Some bacteria in the mouth can help transform nitrate from food into compounds that in turn produce nitric oxide, a chemical found to have a relaxing effect on blood vessels.

When the oral microbiome gets disturbed, it tends to disturb this natural pathway.

While the beetroot juice was silently modifying the blood pressure readings in older adults, similar benefits  weren’t seen in younger adults who were made to drink the juice for the same length of time.

What did the study find?

Nitric oxide has a protective effect on cardiovascular health. It is known to reduce the intercellular calcium levels in the blood vessels, allowing them to be relaxed and open, aiding in vasodilation, a process through which blood vessels naturally expand.

Also, it notably prevents clot formation and also stops inflammatory cells from sticking to the walls of blood vessels which could later result in formation of a plaque, a fatty deposit blocking the blood flow in the vessel.

As per the study, any imbalances in the oral microbial community or poor dental health have an influence on a person’s cardiovascular health. 

This has to do with a crucial chemical pathway — conversion of nitrate into nitrites and then production of nitric oxide which is important for the vascular system and the process relies on oral microbes.

The researchers at the Exeter University (United Kingdom) included  39 adults under age 30 and 36 adults in their 60s and 70s. The group was made to drink beetroot juice, twice a day for two weeks. 

Following this, they were given a two week ‘wash out’ period when they were off any health juice.

This sandwiched period was again followed by another two weeks of putting the participants on a placebo drink that resembled the beetroot juice in its colour but was devoid of nitrates.

The team then used genetic sequencing to examine what kind of microbes were present in the mouth before and after the intake of beetroot drink.

It found that beetroot had significantly changed the oral microbiome in both the younger and older adults.

The bacteria Prevotella (causing inflammation) was found to drop in their oral cavities but at the same time there was a rise in the presence of Neisseria (a bacteria good for immunity).

The findings were consistent with the blood pressure dropping in older adults after they had consumed the beetroot juice. The same changes were not seen after they consumed the placebo drink.

In younger adults, the beetroot juice affected the nitrate metabolism but had no impact on their vascular health. 

The study also noted that the juice had no influence on vascular health of those having hypertension and other medical conditions that had elevated their blood pressure readings. 

It also provided an insight into how the effects of beetroot juice were dependent on the age, medication a person was taking, their health status and the bacteria present at the baseline. 

In an interesting observation, the study also found that the use of chlorhexidine containing mouthwash was suppressing the good oral bacteria and elevating blood pressure in younger adults.