01-20-2005

Folate May Cut Blood Pressure Risk

Women who get large amounts of the vitamin folate from food and supplements have a sharply lower risk of developing high blood pressure, a study of 150,000 women found.

It is the first large study to explore the link, and it adds to the mounting body of evidence that the B vitamin might help ward off heart disease their consumption of folate.

The new study, published in Wednesday's Journal of the American Medical Association, involved one large group of Women ages 27 to 44 and another ages 43 to 70. They recorded their folate intake over an eight - year period during the 1990's.

"If these findings are confirmed by a large, randomized, controlled trial, it would suggest that folic acid, which is both safe and readily available, could be used as a preventative measure against high blood pressure," said the study's lead author, Dr. John Forman of Harvard - affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

Courtesy American Longevity Archives