Egg whites could lower blood pressure in the same way as medication, new research has found.
A key component found in the whites was found to have the same blood pressure lowering properties as Captopril, a high blood-pressure drug.
Dr Zhipeng Yu, who led the research at China’s Jilin University, said: ‘Our research suggests that there may be another reason to call it ‘the incredible, edible egg’.
‘We have evidence from the laboratory that a substance in egg white – it’s a peptide, one of the building blocks of proteins – reduces blood pressure about as much as a low dose of Captopril, a high-blood-pressure drug.’
Dr Yu and his colleagues studied a peptide found in egg white called RVPSL.
This has a powerful ability to inhibit or block the action of ACE, a substance produced in the body that raises blood pressure.
Experiments with rats showed RVPSL had no toxic effects and lowered the blood pressure.
The findings were presented to the National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in New Orleans.
Dr Yu said: ‘Our results support and enhance previous findings on this topic.
‘They were promising enough to move ahead with further research on the effects of the egg white peptide on human health.’
Eggs
Dr Yu said he believed that egg white peptides, either in eggs or as a supplement, could become useful as an adjunct to high-blood-pressure medication.
In 2009, scientists at the University of Alberta in Canada found that eggs produce proteins that mimic the action of powerful blood pressure-lowering drugs.
They too found that eggs may lower blood pressure in the same way as Ace inhibitors.
The drugs lower blood pressure by stopping the hormone angiotensin narrowing the body’s blood vessels.
The researchers found that when eggs come in contact with stomach enzymes, they produce a protein that acts in the same way.
Last month researchers at the University of Missouri reported that a high protein breakfast of eggs is the best way to control appetite and stop dieters snacking at night.
Experts at have found that a breakfast rich in protein significantly improves appetite control and reduces unhealthy snacking on high-fat or high-sugar foods in the evening.
