Effects of Dietary Nitrates on Systemic and Cerebrovascular Hemodynamics

Vernon Bond,Georges E Haddad,Bryan H Curry,M Sadegh Asadi,Richard M Millis,Richard G Adams

doi:10.1155/2013/435629

Abstract

Cerebral blood flow dysregulation is often associated with hypertension. We hypothesized that a beetroot juice (BRJ) treatment could decrease blood pressure and cerebrovascular resistance (CVR). We subjected 12 healthy females to control and BRJ treatments. Cerebrovascular resistance index (CVRI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), total vascular resistance (TVR), and the heart rate-systolic pressure product (RPP) measured at rest and at two exercise workloads were lower after the BRJ treatment. CVRI, SBP, and RPP were lower without a lower TVR at the highest exercise level. These findings suggest improved systemic and cerebral hemodynamics that could translate into a dietary treatment for hypertension.

Highlights

Cognitive deficits are associated with dysregulation of cerebral blood flow in a wide variety of disease states [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]
The beetroot juice treatment is shown to be associated with significantly greater MCAV than that of the orange juice treatment only at the workloads set to 40% and 80% of the predetermined VO2peak
After the beetroot juice treatment, significantly lower Cerebrovascular resistance index (CVRI) was observed at rest and at the three levels of aerobic exercise studied

Summary

Introduction

Cognitive deficits are associated with dysregulation of cerebral blood flow in a wide variety of disease states [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Decreased cerebral blood flow from stroke is a prevalent complication of cardiovascular disease associated with atherosclerosis and hypertension [8]. It is controversial whether obesity is a disease, overweight individuals are susceptible to diabetes mellitus and most of the aforementioned cardiovascular abnormalities, defined as metabolic syndrome, producing predilections for brain hypoperfusion [11]. We designed this study to test the hypothesis that dietary nitrate supplementation with beetroot juice may increase middle cerebral artery blood flow velocity and may decrease a Doppler ultrasonographic index of cerebrovascular resistance in healthy young adult AfricanAmerican female university students

Methods

Results

Conclusion