Efficacy and Challenges in Usage of Gut Microbiome in Management of Hypertension

Abstract

Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and leads to target organ damage including myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, and renal disease. Around 1.5 billion people worldwide have hypertension, and it is estimated that it causes about 8 million deaths per year. Although there are several drugs available to lower Blood Pressure (BP), a large proportion of treated patients do not reach the BP targets recommended by current guidelines.[1] Non-pharmacological interventions to prevent and treat hypertension are lifestyle modifications, such as increased physical activity, yoga/pranayama, reduced salt and alcohol intake, quitting smoking, weight loss, and a healthy diet with high fiber content. Additionally, gut microbiome, which is quite diverse, also has potential influence on blood pressure.Read More...