Roughly 76.4 million adults in the United States have been diagnosed as having high blood pressure, according to the American Heart Association. There are many traditional treatments for the disease, including medications and regular exercise, but one alternative treatment may be drinking apple cider vinegar as a part of your diet. However, it is unclear as of 2011 whether apple cider vinegar is an effective treatment or empty folk medicine.
Acetic Acid
The effect that vinegar has on blood pressure has not been extensively researched. In her 2006 review of the medicinal benefits of vinegar, registered dietitian Carol Johnston notes that a 2001 study with laboratory rats showed hypertensive rats treated with acetic acid from vinegar did improve their blood pressure. However, Johnston adds that no human trials have been completed, and you cannot dedtermine vinegar's effectiveness for humans from this single study.
Quercetin
Quercetin is an antioxidant flavonol present in apples, and it has been shown to potentially improve blood pressure in humans. In a 2007 study published in the "Journal of Nutrition," researchers gave a 730 mg dose of quercetin per day to subjects with stage one hypertension or prehypertension. After 28 days, subjects with stage one hypertension who received the supplement showed marked improvements in systolic, diastolic and mean arterial pressures.
Weight Management
The American Heart Association notes that maintaining a healthy body mass composition and weight is one of the eight main ways to control your blood pressure. Some advocates of apple cider vinegar claim that adding 2 tsp of the substance to a meal can encourage weight loss. However, Columbia University notes that the acetic acid in vinegar will promote water weight loss, but has not been shown to affect the amount of fat in your body.
Supplement Quality
With many health benefits attributed to apple cider vinegar, the product has become widely available in both liquid and supplemental tablet form. In 2006, researchers at the University of Arkansas examined the quality of eight apple cider vinegar tablets purchased from internet vendors. The dietary supplements varied widely in terms of quality and ingredient quantity. Some of the samples were lacking in certain acids found in apple cider vinegar, causing the researchers to question whether the tablets were true apple cider vinegar.
References
- American Heart Association: About High Blood Pressure
- Vegetarian Times; Healing Foods--Apple Cider Vinegar; Matthew G. Kadey, R.D.; October 2010
- Medscape General Medicine; Vinegar--Medicinal Uses and Antiglycemic Effect; Carol S. Johnston, Ph.D., R.D. and Cindy A. Gaas, B.S.; May 2006
- "Journal of Nutrition"; Quercetin Reduces Blood Pressure in Hypertensive Subjects; Randi L. Edwards et al.; November 2007
- University of Arkansas; Apple Cider Vinegar? Or Just Acid?; April 2006
- Columbia University: Apple Cider Vinegar
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