title: Impact of cocoa flavanol consumption on blood pressure responsiveness to exercise.
abstract: Impaired endothelial vasodilatation may contribute to the exaggerated blood pressure (BP) responses to exercise in individuals who are overweight/obese. The present study investigated whether consumption of cocoa flavanols, which improve endothelium-dependent flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), can modify BP responsiveness to exercise. Twenty-one volunteers (eight females and thirteen males, 54.9 (se 2.2) years, BMI 31.6 (se 0.8) kg/m2, systolic BP 134 (se 2) mmHg, diastolic BP (DBP) 87 (se 2) mmHg) were randomised to consume single servings of either a high-flavanol (HF, 701 mg) or a low-flavanol (LF, 22 mg) cocoa beverage in a double-blind, cross-over design with 3-7-d washout between treatments. Two hours after cocoa consumption, FMD was measured, followed by continuous beat-to-beat assessment (Finapres) of BP before and during 10 min of cycling at 75 % of age-predicted maximum heart rate. Averaged data from two assessments on each type of beverage were compared by analysis of covariance using pre-exercise BP as the covariate. Pre-exercise BP was similar after taking LF and HF (153 (se 3)/88 (se 3) v. 153 (se 4)/87 (se 2) mmHg, respectively, P>0.05). However, the BP response to exercise (area under BP curve) was attenuated by HF compared with LF. BP increases were 68 % lower for DBP (P = 0.03) and 14 % lower for mean BP (P = 0.05). FMD measurements were higher after taking HF than after taking LF (6.1 (se 0.6) % v. 3.4 (se 0.5) %, P < 0.001). By facilitating vasodilation and attenuating exercise-induced increases in BP, cocoa flavanols may decrease cardiovascular risk and enhance the cardiovascular benefits of moderate intensity exercise in at-risk individuals.
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, Nutritional Physiology Research Centre and ATN Centre for Metabolic Fitness, University of South Australia, GPO Box 2471, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia. narelle.berry@unisa.edu.au
authors.forename: Narelle M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Berry
authors.forename: Kade
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Davison
authors.forename: Alison M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Coates
authors.forename: Jonathan D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Buckley
authors.forename: Peter R C
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Howe
mesh_terms: D001628:Beverages; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D002099:Cacao / Q000737:chemistry*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D044948:Flavonols / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D050177:Overweight
chemical_list: D044948:Flavonols