Try This Noodle for Better Blood Pressure

I wish I could get my husband to eat whole wheat pasta, as he has high blood pressure. Fortunately, I love it. It is so wonderful that you can eat something to lower it!

Try This Noodle for Better Blood Pressure

Pasta salad. Summer isn't complete without it. And here's the noodle you should use to do your blood pressure some good at the same time: whole-wheat pasta.

How's it work? Well, whole-wheat pasta contains glutamic acid, a vegetable protein that has been linked to better blood pressure in recent research.

Protective Protein
In a study released last month, the more glutamic acid people got in their diets, the better their blood pressure was. In fact, just a 4.7 percent increase in the proportion of protein people got from glutamic acid instead of other sources was associated with systolic numbers that were 1.5 to 3 points lower on average. And diastolic readings were lower, too, by about 1 to 1.6 points. The effect occurred in both men and women but was strongest in women. Top your pasta with the easy marinara sauce recipe in this video.

Great Glutamate
Researchers aren't sure how glutamic acid affects blood pressure, but it's possible that components of glutamic acid enhance the blood-pressure-lowering effects of nitric oxide or help blood vessels relax. And whole-wheat foods are only one source. You also can get glutamic acid from rice, beans, and soy products like tofu.

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