Grant: Operating Grant

High blood pressure (hypertension) is an important silent killer that can cause heart attacks and stroke. Not only is hypertension a deadly disease, it also cost $76 B last year alone in the US. Current drugs used to control hypertension are costly, can induce unwanted side-effects and they are not always effective in controlling blood pressure (BP) in all hypertensive patients. Having a food that will control BP represents a less expensive intervention than drugs. We have recently completed a major tightly controlled trial in which patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) were supplemented daily for one year with flaxseed in their diet. The ingestion of flaxseed produced a strong and consistent drop in blood pressure throughout the year long trial. Patients who entered the trial with high systolic BP were the most affected by dietary flaxseed and decreased systolic BP by 15 mm Hg, an effect that is comparable to most hypertensive drugs available today. This decline in BP would lower the incidence of heart attacks and strokes by more than 50%. In the present study, we will determine, therefore, if flaxseed will lower BP in a more common population of patients who have high blood pressure but do not have peripheral artery disease. We will also demonstrate if the anti-hypertensive action of flaxseed can delay or reduce the need for high blood pressure drugs. Providing low cost alternatives to drug therapy that can be used alone or in conjunction with medication has enormous appeal for the Canadian health care system. Even more importantly, this low cost alternative to expensive medication for high blood pressure represents an appealing choice for third world countries and poor communities everywhere that cannot afford the drugs they need to lower blood pressure and protect themselves from heart attacks and strokes.