Study: Olive leaf extract found effective in lowering blood pressure

A study, conducted at the University of Indonesia, has proven that the olive leaf extract Benolea from Frutarom is as efficient as the widely used pharmaceutical Captopril in lowering elevated blood pressure levels.

The company presented these results during this year's Vitafoods in Geneva.

The study found Benolea to significantly reduce total cholesterol and plasma triglyceride levels, an effect which was not observed with the conventional drug.

The randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, active controlled study involved 232 participants aged 25 to 60 years with stage-1 hypertension (systolic blood pressure 140-159 mmHg, and/or diastolic blood pressure 90-99 mmHg) who were not taking any medication or were asked to stop it upon consent.

A four-week run-in period without treatment was followed by eight weeks of treatment with either one 500 mg Benolea caplet or one 12.5 mg Captopril tablet, each taken twice a day.

After two weeks, if participants showed no response to Captopril, they received a double dose of the drug.

Dietary advice was given to help participants manage their hypertension, and adverse events and changes in laboratory parameters such as routine hematology, serum electrolytes, liver and renal function were monitored.

At the end of the study, both Benolea and Captopril had lowered systolic and diastolic blood pressure compared to baseline.

The reduction of blood pressure in the natural treatment group with Benolea was comparable to the pharmaceutical group with Captopril.

With regards to lipid profile, Benolea significantly reduced total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Particularly in participants with high baseline triglyceride levels (>200 mg/dl), the reduction was remarkable: the triglycerides diminished by 53.13 mg/dl.

Such positive effects were not observed in the Captopril group.