New studies show a flavonoid-rich foods link to better heart health. Learn about this connection and the benefits of flavonoids in your diet.
According to a recent study, flavonoid-rich foods help lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease. The study, available in the journal Hypertension, is the first to analyze how these foods help lower blood pressure. Furthermore, the study shows that anthocyanins, a type of flavonoid, are specifically effective at improving blood pressure health.
What are flavonoids?
Flavonoids are naturally available in various fruits, vegetables, and plant products like wine, tea, and chocolate. Moreover, there are six different types found in food and the body breaks down each of them differently. Since they are rich in antioxidant activity, having them as part of your diet can provide multiple health benefits.
The six different flavonoid types include flavanols, flavan-3-ols, flavones, flavanones, isoflavones, and anthocyanins. Flavonols help manage cardiovascular disease symptoms and are available in onions, kale, grapes, tea, peaches, berries, tomatoes, lettuce, and broccoli. Flavan-3-ols are rich in nutrients and foods include white tea, green tea, oolong tea, black tea, apples, cocoa, and berries.
Flavones help with inflammation and you can find them in red peppers, parsley, celery, peppermint, and chamomile. In addition, they work as natural pesticides and can protect leaves from harmful insects. Flavanones also have anti-inflammatory properties and are in lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruit.
In contrast, isoflavones, help keep your hormones in balance and are mostly in soy, soy products, and other legumes. Finally, we have anthocyanins, which are the natural pigments that give flowers that red, purple, and blue color. You can mostly find these in the outer skin of berries and berry products such as red and purple grapes and red wine.
Benefits of Flavonoids
In general, they help the body function more efficiently by protecting it from everyday toxins and stressors. Moreover, they are powerful antioxidant agents, which means they help the body fight off potentially harmful molecules. They also help dismiss your body’s inflammatory reaction as an immune response, reducing potentially uncomfortable symptoms.
At least five of the different subtypes help reduce high blood pressure, especially anthocyanins according to the new study. Studies also show that consuming higher levels of flavonoids may help lower the risk of having a heart attack. Furthermore, a high intake of dietary flavonoids may help decrease your risk of type 2 diabetes (more research is necessary).
Ultimately, they provide various health benefits due to their antioxidant properties and more. If you want to help improve your health, consider adding flavonoid-rich foods to your diet. Moreover, if you are thinking of giving your heart an extra boost, try taking supplements like HeartBeet Complete.
It contains ingredients that help promote your circulation, blood pressure health, and more. By combining HeartBeet Complete with flavonoid-rich foods, you’ll give your heart health the support it needs – so try it now.
