Antioxidant Vitamins Promote Healthy Arteries

In that a number of previous studies have found that antioxidant supplementation has the potential to alleviate the atherosclerotic damage caused by excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), Reuven Zimlichman, from Tel Aviv University (Israel), and colleagues evaluated the effects of prolonged antioxidant treatment on arterial elasticity, inflammatory and metabolic measures in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors.  The team enrolled 70 patients from a hypertension clinic, who were randomized to receive either antioxidants or placebo capsules for six months. Tests at the beginning of the trial, after three months and at the six month mark revealed that the patients in the antioxidant group had more elastic arteries (a measure of increased cardiovascular health) and better blood sugar and cholesterol profiles. Observing that: “Antioxidant supplementation significantly increased large and small artery elasticity in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors,” the researchers write that: “This beneficial vascular effect was associated with an improvement in glucose and lipid metabolism as well as decrease in blood pressure.”