Hypertension normally doesn’t produce symptoms, but it causes inflammation of your blood vessels, which supply nutrients to all your organs. Chronic inflammation leads to narrowing of your arteries, making it harder for organs to receive the right amount of nutrients. Over time, high blood pressure can increase your chances of heart disease, stroke and kidney failure. Peptides, which are two or more amino acids coupled together by a peptide bond, may help reduce blood pressure. Consult your health care professional or physician before consuming peptides, especially if you’re taking medications.
ACE
Peptides, particularly those derived from milk protein, may lower your blood pressure by inhibiting angiotensin converting enzyme, according to a study conducted by researchers at the Institute for Biomembranes and Bioenergetics in Italy. Increasing ACE activity catalyzes angiotensin I, which in turn stimulates the release of angiotensin II, a hormone that constricts your blood vessels and increases blood pressure in your body. Inhibiting ACE activity prevents the activation of angiotension II and reduces your blood pressure. Milk peptides are effective ACE inhibitors, according to research published in the 2009 issue of "Current Pharmaceutical Design.”
Fermented Milk
Scientists at the Research Center in Finland studied the impact of fermented milk high in peptides on blood pressure in patients with hypertension. Subjects received 150 ml of fermented milk high in peptides or a control beverage daily for 21 weeks. At the end of the study, which was published in the February 2003 issue of the “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,” scientists discovered that those in the fermented milk group experienced decreases in blood pressure compared with those who had a control beverage.
Hydrolyzed Whey Protein
Hydrolyzed whey protein is a form of whey protein that contains peptides. Researchers at the University of Minnesota investigated the effects of hydrolyzed whey protein on cardiovascular disease risk factors. They found that pre-hypertensive and hypertensive subjects consuming 20 grams of hydrolyzed whey protein daily for six weeks lowered their blood pressure. The findings were reported in the November 2006 issue of the "Journal of Clinical Hypertension."
No Effect
In a study published in the February 2007 issue of the “European Journal of Nutrition,” researchers at Technical University Munich in Germany found that mildly hypertensive subjects consuming 125 ml of a milk drink supplemented with whey peptides daily for 12 weeks experienced no changes in blood pressure.
References
- "Current Pharmaceutical Design"; Angiotension Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibitory Peptides: Production and Implementation of Functional Food; F. De Leo et al.; 2009
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; A Fermented Milk High in Bioactive Peptides Has a Blood Pressure-Lowering Effect in Hypertensive Subjects; L. Seppo et al.; February 2003
- "Journal of Clinical Hypertension"; Effects of Whey Peptides on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors; J.J. Pins and J.M. Keenan; November 2006
- "European Journal of Nutrition"; Effect of a Milk Drink Supplemented With Whey Peptides on Blood Pressure in Patients With Mild Hypertension; Y.M. Lee et al.; February 2007
