Hollenberg Norman K, Fisher Naomi D L, McCullough Marjorie L
Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
J Am Soc Hypertens. 2009 Mar-Apr;3(2):105-12. doi: 10.1016/j.jash.2008.11.001. Epub 2009 Feb 20.
The Kuna Indians, who reside in an archipelago on the Caribbean Coast of Panama, have very low blood pressure (BP) levels, live longer than other Panamanians, and have a reduced frequency of myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and cancer-at least on their death certificates. One outstanding feature of their diet includes a very high intake of flavanol-rich cocoa. Flavonoids in cocoa activate nitric oxide synthesis in healthy humans. The possibility that the high flavanol intake protects the Kuna against high BP, ischemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and cancer is sufficiently intriguing and sufficiently important that large, randomized controlled clinical trials should be pursued.
居住在巴拿马加勒比海岸一个群岛上的库纳印第安人，血压水平极低，比其他巴拿马人寿命更长，心肌梗死、中风、糖尿病和癌症的发病率也较低——至少在他们的死亡证明上是这样显示的。他们饮食的一个显著特点是富含黄烷醇的可可摄入量非常高。可可中的类黄酮能激活健康人体内的一氧化氮合成。高黄烷醇摄入量能保护库纳人免受高血压、缺血性心脏病、中风、糖尿病和癌症侵害，这一可能性极具吸引力且非常重要，因此应该开展大规模的随机对照临床试验。
