Chapter 1 - Vegetables as functional foods against cardiovascular diseases

Abstract

Vegetables represent one of the most important components of the human diet and are considered essential for a balanced diet. Each vegetable contains a unique combination of bioactive ingredients and can protect humans from chronic diseases. A wide variety of vegetables should be consumed to ensure that the individual's diet includes a satisfactory combination of phytochemicals in order to reap all the health benefits. Studies have shown that eating vegetables, through various mechanisms, contributes to the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Cardio-protective effects of vegetables include antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anticoagulant action, regulation of blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid profile and modulation of biomarkers and enzymatic activities related to cardiovascular diseases. In this review, we summarize the beneficial properties of vegetables and functional vegetable foods against cardiovascular diseases based on epidemiological, experimental and clinical studies, which are important for the application of vegetables in the prevention and treatment of these diseases.