Diets containing blueberry extract lower blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rats.

Oxidative stress in the vasculature and kidneys contributes to hypertension, a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Blueberries (BB) are rich in antioxidants, and so we hypothesized that feeding diets enriched with BB would slow the development of hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rats (SHRSP). Eight-week-old normotensive rats and SHRSP were fed either a control diet (Con) or a diet enriched with 3% freeze-dried BB for 8 weeks.