Study: Vitamin E could help high blood pressure
High doses of vitamin E significantly reduce high blood pressure in
rats with chronic kidney failure, according to a UCI College of Medicine
study.
Results of the study, released Feb. 13, show the key role a damaging
process called oxidative stress plays in causing high blood pressure. It
also shows how vitamin E and other antioxidants could provide new ways to
treat high blood pressure, especially in patients with kidney disease.
Dr. Nick Vaziri, professor of medicine and chief of nephrology, and
his colleagues found that rats with impaired kidneys produced high levels
of highly reactive chemicals known to cause damage to cells. Antioxidants
such as vitamin E reduced free radical levels and eased the high blood
pressure that accompanied impaired kidney function.
“This study confirms earlier work showing that kidney failure results
in accelerated production of free radicals and demonstrates the
beneficial effect of antioxidants,” Vaziri said. “We hope that future
tests on humans will show how much antioxidants can be used to help ease
high blood pressure and free radical production in kidney disease.”
Vaziri and his team have spent years studying the various biochemical
interactions that lead to kidney failure in an attempt to find better
treatments for the disease.
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.