June 17, 2003 Volume 39 Issue 24

Sesame oil lowers BP

By Kylie Taggart

TAMIL NADU, INDIA – Researchers from the Annamalai University in Chidambaram here found cooking with sesame oil in place of other oils lowers blood pressure and the amount of medication needed to control hypertension.

Dr. Devarajan Sankar (PhD) and colleagues studied 328 patients taking 10 mg to 30 mg of the calcium channel blocker nifedipine to control their hypertension. The participants were asked to switch to sesame oil from their regular cooking oil for two months. They consumed on average 35 g of sesame oil per day.

Their average systolic and diastolic blood pressures were reduced from 166/101 mm Hg to 134/84.6 mm Hg. The nifedipine dosage was also lowered from an average 22.7 mg a day to 7.4 mg a day.

Sesame oil is high in polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E. The researchers had previously reported it lowers blood pressure in hypertensives taking diuretics and beta-blockers.

The current data were presented at the Inter-American Society of Hypertension meeting recently.