Does Apple Cider Vinegar Lower Blood Pressure Immediately 2024?

Upwards 47% of Americans^[1] nationwide struggle with high blood pressure. Lowering blood pressure will often be a matter of weight loss, diet, and lifestyle, but it’s not always a simple thing to accomplish.

In our never-ending search for the ultimate miracle cure, apple cider vinegar has been put under the spotlight time and time again. Does apple cider vinegar work when lowering one’s blood pressure? What other health benefits does it bring to the table?

A word of warning: don’t believe everything that you read, and don’t toss out those hypertensive drugs just yet. We’re here to demystify this scientific quandary. In any case, here are a few ways that apple cider vinegar might be able to improve your life. 

Does Apple Cider Vinegar Lower Your Blood Pressure?

Can apple cider vinegar lower blood pressure immediately? It cannot. Despite its stellar reputation as a healthy, plant-based part of any diet, apple cider vinegar (ACV) is not a wonder drug that can take the place of your blood pressure medication.

This popular notion—the idea that drinking apple cider vinegar can help you achieve healthy blood pressure—is likely due in part to a period of fascination with acetic acid and its role in cardiovascular function.

Many studies have been conducted; some point to ACV as an essential ingredient^[2] in any heart-healthy, calorie-restricted diet, while others undoubtedly show that there is simply no correlation. 

Instead of choosing sides, we’re going to err on the side of caution with this one. At the same time, many healthcare experts believe that acetic acid-sponsored renin activity is actually the key to lowering blood pressure, our stance is that vinegar ingestion isn’t an indispensable requirement for cardiovascular health. Renin is a blood pressure-regulating enzyme made in the kidneys. 

Instead, we believe that, through various lifestyle changes related to ACV, one might be able to achieve a healthy lifestyle and lower blood pressure secondarily, as a side effect of these changes.  

It’s not difficult—regular exercise, avoiding processed foods, and doing what you can to prevent weight gain will all result in lower blood pressure, healthier blood vessels, lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and even improved gut health. Is there anything that apple cider vinegar can’t do^[3], aside from lowering blood pressure instantly?

Apple Cider Vinegar Benefits 

Apple juice-derived apple cider vinegar is used for tons of common applications—treating acid reflux, cleaning teeth enamel, and even as a part of one’s beauty and hair regimen.

When apple juice is left to ferment into acetic acid, beyond the point of being inebriating alcohol, you’re left with what we would call apple cider vinegar juice with the mother. The “mother” is sort of like the SCOBY in kombucha, the culture of microscopic bacteria digesting the juice as a part of the fermentation process.

By way of this process, you can gain many apple cider vinegar’s benefits, such as ample amounts of B vitamins and polyphenols. The anti-inflammatory properties of the latter mean that apple cider vinegar may be able to help your body fight free radicals in the artery walls and elsewhere, too. You’ll enjoy lower overall serum total cholesterol and triacylglycerol^[4], thanks to the ample amounts of acetic acid that apple cider vinegar naturally contains.

Aid Weight Loss 

It’s no secret that one of apple cider vinegar’s effects may be its potential for a dieter hoping to lose weight. Taking apple cider vinegar with hot water and some honey in the morning, for example, is one way to kick-start your digestion for the day.

Research shows^[5] that ACV may increase the efficiency with which the body utilizes glucose and expends energy. It might even be able to help improve satiety after every meal, preventing you from eating too much later on.

Apple cider vinegar is a delicious and low-calorie alternative to things like salad dressing, glazes for meat, and other sauces—if you take a shine to it, you might even be able to reduce your salt intake, too, which can help you reduce blood pressure naturally and avoid a host of other health problems like heart attacks, as well.

Does weight loss lead to low blood pressure by default? It’s one of the major health benefits of dropping a few pounds—if your own blood pressure is a concern, losing weight with the help of apple cider vinegar might be a wise move to make. 

Blood Sugar And Diabetes

The PubMed study above also speaks promisingly to apple cider vinegar’s ability to help you balance blood sugar levels, as well as the fact that it appears to facilitate the production and secretion of insulin. It suppresses hepatic glucose production and the post-prandial insulin response while doing the metabolic work described above.

One famous study^[6] found that apple cider vinegar was able to reduce blood glucose levels in diabetic trial participants, which actually cascaded into lower blood pressure as a consequence. This secondary impact by way of blood glucose might be one way to help manage high blood pressure, but you should always consult your physician before switching up your routine significantly.

Healthy Gut Microbiome

If you consume apple cider vinegar regularly, the acetic acid, polyphenolic compounds, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids that it contains might have a positive effect^[7] on your digestive health and the intestinal microbiome. These bioactive molecules cleanse your system and help moderate the absorption of nutrients, facilitating smoother bowel movements and a healthier gut overall.

Acetic acid has played a huge role^[8] in gastric emptying and disaccharidase activity in the small intestine, which gives your digestive system more time to process every meal you put into your body. Factor these health benefits into the metabolic aspect of consuming apple cider vinegar, and, suddenly, your system has been optimized entirely. 

Help Kill Bacteria On Your Food

It’s crazy, but it’s true^[9]: research into the matter was able to show that apple cider vinegar was able to significantly reduce the amount of Salmonella typhimurium on a salad of arugula and spring onion to between 1.32 and 3.12 log colony forming units per gram (cfu/g) on average. ACV boasts antimicrobial properties, prevents bacterial growth, and can even be used as a cleaning agent in your home.

The team behind this study was able to maximize this effect with a 1:1 mixture of both lemon juice and apple cider vinegar, which, if we’re being honest, sounds delicious, especially with a bit of olive oil thrown in for good measure. They were able to reduce Salmonella on the salad to levels undetectable to their testing equipment. Talk about salad dressing with benefits.

How To Take Apple Cider Vinegar? 

What’s the best way for apple cider vinegar consumption in food and drinks? A few of our favorite ways to include apple cider vinegar in our diets include the following:

• As a part of our favorite salad dressings—honey mustard, tahini-garlic, ginger and soy, and many others
• In meat marinades, such as in tangy Greek garlic chicken or as part of a steak chimichurri sauce
• A tonic shot when we need a boost diluted slightly with water and with the addition of anything from cayenne to lemon juice or even chia and basil seeds
• A soothing hot tea, sweetened with honey
• A bright and vibrant iced beverage, flavored with fresh herbs or cucumber

If you’re hungry or thirsty, there are a million different ways that you can make each meal and snack an ACV moment. Sweet or savory, there are tons of ideas for every palate and occasion.

Apple Cider Vinegar For Heart Health: The Jury Remains Unconvinced

We’ll admit it: we don’t have all of the answers in life. Just because few peer-reviewed studies validate the theory that apple cider vinegar may be able to lower blood pressure doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be using ACV to improve digestion, reduce blood sugar levels, and aid you in your weight loss efforts.

Does apple cider vinegar help bring down blood pressure? Not really, but it’s still awesome for other things, like lowering cholesterol levels and preventing other health conditions related to the heart, digestive system, and metabolic system.

There are a thousand ways to incorporate apple cider vinegar into your lifestyle. Whether as a part of our healthy diet or simply on-hand as a non-toxic cleaner, we love to use ACV for pretty much everything under the sun.

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