Department of Cardiology, University of Leipzig-Heart Center, Leipzig, Germany.
Am J Hypertens. 2010 Jan;23(1):97-103. doi: 10.1038/ajh.2009.213. Epub 2009 Nov 12.
Cocoa products such as dark chocolate and cocoa beverages may have blood pressure (BP)-lowering properties due to their high content of plant-derived flavanols.
We performed a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials assessing the antihypertensive effects of flavanol-rich cocoa products. The primary outcome measure was the change in systolic and diastolic BP between intervention and control groups.
In total, 10 randomized controlled trials comprising 297 individuals were included in the analysis. The populations studied were either healthy normotensive adults or patients with prehypertension/stage 1 hypertension. Treatment duration ranged from 2 to 18 weeks. The mean BP change in the active treatment arms across all trials was -4.5 mm Hg (95% confidence interval (CI), -5.9 to -3.2, P < 0.001) for systolic BP and -2.5 mm Hg (95% CI, -3.9 to -1.2, P < 0.001) for diastolic BP.
The meta-analysis confirms the BP-lowering capacity of flavanol-rich cocoa products in a larger set of trials than previously reported. However, significant statistical heterogeneity across studies could be found, and questions such as the most appropriate dose and the long-term side effect profile warrant further investigation before cocoa products can be recommended as a treatment option in hypertension.
由于可可产品（如黑巧克力和可可饮料）含有丰富的植物衍生黄烷醇，因此可能具有降低血压（BP）的特性。
我们对评估富含黄烷醇的可可产品的降压作用的随机对照试验进行了荟萃分析。主要观察指标是干预组和对照组之间收缩压和舒张压的变化。
共有 10 项随机对照试验，包括 297 名参与者被纳入分析。研究人群为健康的正常血压成年人或高血压前期/1 期高血压患者。治疗持续时间从 2 周到 18 周不等。所有试验中，活性治疗组的平均血压变化为收缩压降低 4.5mmHg（95%置信区间[CI]，-5.9 至-3.2，P<0.001），舒张压降低 2.5mmHg（95%CI，-3.9 至-1.2，P<0.001）。
与之前报道的相比，该荟萃分析在更大的试验集内证实了富含黄烷醇的可可产品的降压能力。然而，在研究之间发现了显著的统计学异质性，并且在推荐可可产品作为高血压治疗选择之前，还需要进一步研究最适当的剂量和长期的副作用概况等问题。
