In The News: Eating Yogurt May Protect Against High Blood Pressure

A new study suggests that including yogurt in ones daily diet may protect against high blood pressure. According to research presented at the American Heart Association’s High Blood Pressure Research 2012 Scientific Sessions- the "study found long-term yogurt-eaters were less likely to develop high blood pressure and on average had lower systolic blood pressure than those who didn’t eat yogurt. Systolic blood pressure is the top number in a blood pressure reading. It measures the force of blood against the walls of your arteries when your heart is beating". The study, funded by the Framingham Heart Study of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health and by a research grant from the Dannon Company, Inc., was conducted for 15 years and over 2000 volunteers were followed. Results showed that participants were 31 percent less likely to develop high blood pressure if at least 2 percent of their daily calories came from yogurt (this is equivalent to eating at least one six-ounce cup of low-fat yogurt every three days) In addition, their systolic blood pressure increased less than that of people who didn’t eat yogurt. You can read more about the study abstract by clicking HERE. Want to add more yogurt into your diet? Try my Yogurt Parfait Shots, Apple Cinnamon Yogurt Dip or my Ridiculously Easy and Healthy Fruit Yogurt!