Chlorogenic Acid Found Beneficial for Blood Pressure

by | Apr 15, 2016 | 2015, Blood Pressure, Cardiovascular Health

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Reviews of randomized clinical trials show that chlorogenic acid supplementation statistically and significantly reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressures in participating subjects.

High blood pressure is a significant health risk across the world (1), having recently been identified as the number one burden of death today (2), and costing the American healthcare system $76 billion in 2010 (3). The number of people aged 65 and over is growing and high blood pressure increases dramatically with age, so this cost is almost certain to go up.

Natural approaches such as 250 milligrams of tomato extract (4), 30 grams of milled flax seed (5), and two grams of hibiscus tea per day (6) have been shown to help maintain healthy blood pressure. A new research review (7) suggests chlorogenic acid, a naturally occurring compound in unroasted coffee beans, (8) may also help with blood pressure.

In the study, researchers analyzed data on five studies comprising 365 subjects (the exact number of males vs. females was not specified). They found “a statistically significant reduction” in both systolic blood pressure (the top number) and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number). For systolic blood pressure, researchers observed a 4.31 mmHg-decrease (p < 0.00001) while the average decrease in diastolic blood pressure was 3.68 mmHg (p < 0.00001). No adverse events were reported with chlorogenic acid supplementation.

The study with the results closest to the aforementioned average decreases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure was conducted in 2005 (9) in 117 men with mild high blood pressure. Specifically, 93 milligrams of chlorogenic acid per day for 28 days reduced systolic blood pressure by 4.7 mmHg (p < 0.01) and diastolic blood pressure by 3.2 mmHg (p < 0.05).

For the researchers, “the evidence suggests that chlorogenic acid intake causes statistically significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressures” though because few clinical trials have been conducted, “Large independent trials evaluating the effects of CGA on blood pressure are warranted.”

Source: Onakpoya, I. J., et al. “The effect of chlorogenic acid on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.” Journal of human hypertension 29.2 (2015): 77-81.

© 2015 Macmillan Publishers Limited All rights reserved 0950-9240/15

Posted February 26, 2015.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY. You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com

References:

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  2. Lim SS, Vos T, Flaxman AD, et al. A comparative risk assessment of burden of disease and injury attributable to 67 risk factors and risk factor clusters in 21 regions, 1990-2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Lancet. 2012;380:2224–2260
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  4. Rodriguez-Leyva D. Potent Antihypertensive Action of Dietary Flaxseed in Hypertensive Patients. Hypertension 2013 Dec;62(6):1081-9. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.113.02094. Epub 2013 Oct 14
  5. De Leeuw PW. The Effects of Natural Antioxidants from Tomato Extract in Treated but Uncontrolled Hypertensive Patients . Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2009 Apr;23(2):107-8. doi: 10.1007/s10557-008-6161-4
  6. Mozaffari-Khosravi H. The effects of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa) on hypertension in patients with type II diabetes. J Hum Hypertens 2009 Jan;23(1):48-54. doi: 10.1038/jhh.2008.100. Epub 2008 Aug 7 Onakpoya IJ.
  7. The effect of chlorogenic acid on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. J Hum Hypertens 2015 Feb;29(2):77-81. doi: 10.1038/jhh.2014.46. Epub 2014 Jun 19
  8. Marcason W. What is green coffee extract? J Acad Nutr Diet 2013; 113(2): 364
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