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Thursday, April 02, 2009

Yellow Pea Shows Promise to Lower Blood Pressure

Mom was right when she told you to eat your peas. A new study suggests that that an extract from the yellow garden pea may cut blood pressure and help kidney function.

A Canadian study from the University of Manitoba showed that rats fed the pea protein hydrolysate from the yellow garden pea showed a 20% drop in blood pressure.

This is big news for the increasing number of people, who are suffering from hypertension due to malfunction of the kidneys, estimated to be at 13% of American adults. Not only does the study show that it helped alleviate high blood pressure in animals who are already suffering from kidney disease because of hypertension, but it will also help those with hypertension prior to kidney damage.

It’s important to note however that that the research showed that the peas in their natural state could not produce the same effect as that of the purified protein, which was activated with an enzyme treatment in the lab. But the extract is a natural approach rather than a pharmacological approach to lowering blood pressure. The final product is an edible rather than a drug.

Researchers at Manitoba said they are currently working on studying the effects in human volunteers and expect to show the results this fall.

More information here.



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