Diet supplemented with herbs and spices found to lower blood pressure

November 9, 2021
New research has found that adding herbs and spices to meals – instead of salt – not only makes food tastier but lowers blood pressure and significantly improves heart health as well. According to researchers at Pennsylvania State University, just 6.5 grams, or about 1.3 teaspoons, of herbs and spices a day offers people a straightforward way to help improve their health. The researchers recruited some 70 people with risk factors for heart disease for the study. Every participant consumed a spice diet—one low, one moderate, and one high in herbs and spices—in a random order for four weeks each, with a two-week break between each diet period. The low-dose, medium-dose and high-dose diets included 0.5 grams, 3.2 grams and 6.5 grams of herbs and spices, respectively, a day; and included a range from basil and thyme to cinnamon and turmeric. [All three diets were based on an average American diet, but with three different doses of herbs and spices added.] Based on analysis of blood samples, the researchers found that participants had lower systolic blood pressure after consuming the diet including a high dose of herbs and spices, compared to the diet with the medium dose. Participants also had lower diastolic blood pressure after the diet with a high dose of herbs and spices than after the diet with a low dose. Penny Kris-Etherton, Evan Pugh University Professor of Nutritional Sciences said the results were especially exciting because the diets in the study were not designed to be specifically heart healthy, and only differed from an average diet by the amount of herbs and spices added. "I think it's really significant that participants consumed an average American diet throughout the study and we still found these results," Kris-Etherton said. "We didn't decrease sodium, we didn't increase fruits and vegetables, we just added herbs and spices. It begs the next question that if we did alter the diet in these ways, how much better would the results be?"

New research has found that adding herbs and spices to meals – instead of salt – not only makes food tastier but lowers blood pressure and significantly improves heart health as well. According to researchers at Pennsylvania State University, just 6.5 grams, or about 1.3 teaspoons, of herbs and spices a day offers people a straightforward way to help improve their health.

The researchers recruited some 70 people with risk factors for heart disease for the study. Every participant consumed a spice diet—one low, one moderate, and one high in herbs and spices—in a random order for four weeks each, with a two-week break between each diet period. The low-dose, medium-dose and high-dose diets included 0.5 grams, 3.2 grams and 6.5 grams of herbs and spices, respectively, a day; and included a range from basil and thyme to cinnamon and turmeric.

[All three diets were based on an average American diet, but with three different doses of herbs and spices added.]

Based on analysis of blood samples, the researchers found that participants had lower systolic blood pressure after consuming the diet including a high dose of herbs and spices, compared to the diet with the medium dose. Participants also had lower diastolic blood pressure after the diet with a high dose of herbs and spices than after the diet with a low dose.

Penny Kris-Etherton, Evan Pugh University Professor of Nutritional Sciences said the results were especially exciting because the diets in the study were not designed to be specifically heart healthy, and only differed from an average diet by the amount of herbs and spices added.

“I think it’s really significant that participants consumed an average American diet throughout the study and we still found these results,” Kris-Etherton said. “We didn’t decrease sodium, we didn’t increase fruits and vegetables, we just added herbs and spices. It begs the next question that if we did alter the diet in these ways, how much better would the results be?”

Read: Switching to plant-based diets may help manage weight issues better

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Category: Features, Wellness and Complementary Therapies

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