Sesame oil is a flavorful seasoning and cooking oil for preparing meals. It also has special properties to improve your health, including lowering your blood pressure, based on a limited number of research studies. Consult your doctor about the blood pressure lowering effects of sesame oil.
Sesame Oil
Sesame oil is a nutrient-dense food that contains healthy fats, including monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E and vitamin K. Dark sesame oil, also called Asian sesame oil, is made from toasted sesame seeds and has a golden brown color and nutty flavor that is good for seasoning but not cooking. Light sesame oil is made from untoasted sesame seeds and has a light color with a mild flavor that is good for both seasoning and cooking.
Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is the force of blood on the walls of your arteries. High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is a persistent increased pressure on your arterial walls as blood circulates. High blood pressure is among the most common, life-threatening conditions and is a risk factor for stroke, the third leading cause of death in the United States. High blood pressure also increases your risk of coronary artery disease, heart failure and kidney disease. The conventional treatment of high blood pressure includes reducing your dietary sodium intake and taking medications, such as diuretics, beta blockers or angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors.
Blood Pressure Treatment
Sesame oil exacerbates the therapeutic effects of certain medications that lower blood pressure. Scientists at the Aarupadai Veedu Institute of Technology in Tamil Nadu, India, investigated the effect of sesame oil in patients with high blood pressure taking anti-hypertensive medication, either with diuretics or beta blockers, according to research published in "The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine" in March 2006. The results demonstrate that sesame oil, when used as the only edible oil for 45 days, lowers systolic and diastolic blood pressure back to normal. When individuals no longer consumed sesame oil for a subsequent 45-day period, blood pressure increased to the levels observed prior to the study.
Other Health Benefits
Sesame oil can help you reduce your risk of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that occur together and increase your risk of stroke, heart disease and diabetes. These conditions include high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, increased blood sugar and insulin, and excessive body fat and waist circumference. Scientists at Louisiana State University in New Orleans found that a sesame oil-containing diet significantly reduces blood levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol -- the “bad cholesterol” and atherosclerotic lesion formation in mice, according to research published in the "Journal of Medicinal Food" in Winter 2006. Sesame oil also reduces blood sugar in diabetic rats, according to scientists at Annamalai University in Tamil Nadu, India, and published in the "Journal of Medicinal Food" in Fall 2005. Furthermore, the scientists at Aarupadai Veedu Institute of Technology found sesame oil reduces body weight and body mass index.
References
- U.S. Department of Agriculture; National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 23; September 2010
- Fine Cooking: Sesame Oil
- Johns Hopkins Medicine Health Alerts; Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) and Stroke; 2010
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Deaths: Final Data for 2007
- MayoClinic.com; High Blood Pressure (Hypertension); March 2011
- "The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine"; Effect of Sesame Oil on Diuretics or Beta-Blockers in the Modulation of Blood Pressure, Anthropometry, Lipid Profile, and Redox Status; D. Sankar, et al.; March 2006
- MayoClinic.com; Metabolic Syndrome; November 2009
- "Journal of Medicinal Food"; Inhibition of Atherosclerosis in Low-Density Lipoprotein Receptor-Negative Mice by Sesame Oil; Shylesh Bhaskaran, et al.; Winter 2006
- "Journal of Medicinal Food"; Influence of Sesame Oil on Blood Glucose, Lipid Peroxidation, and Antioxidant Status in Streptozotocin Diabetic Rats; B. Ramesh, et al.; Fall 2005
