According to the American Heart Association, nearly half of all American adults have high blood pressure. According to the CDC, only 22.5% of adults with high blood pressure have it under control. That’s concerning since high blood pressure increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, the leading causes of death in the United States. There is mounting evidence that the simple, beautiful pomegranate can help.
Surprisingly, this exotic fruit that that originated in Iran and India, is actually a berry. Pomegranates are loaded in antioxidant polyphenols.
In 2017, a meta-analysis of 8 controlled studies found that pomegranate juice significantly reduces both systolic and diastolic blood pressure (Pharmacol Res. 2017 Jan:115:149-161).
Since then, many more studies on have been published. A new, much larger meta-analysis has now pooled the evidence from 22 controlled studies of different forms of pomegranate on high blood pressure.
Once again, the evidence showed that pomegranate significantly lowered systolic and diastolic blood pressure. It lowers systolic blood pressure by 7.87 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 3.23 mmHg.
These studies contribute to the mounting evidence that pomegranate can help lower high blood pressure.
Phytother Res. 2024 Feb 27. doi:10.1002/ptr.8170.