Date of Award

2020

Document Type

Open Access Master's Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Biological Sciences (MS)

Administrative Home Department

Department of Biological Sciences

Advisor 1

John Durocher

Committee Member 1

Adrienne Minerick

Committee Member 2

Zhiying Shan

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the foremost cause of death worldwide. The main risk factor for CVD is uncontrolled hypertension (HTN). The prescription of only anti-hypertensive regimens in the management of HTN is becoming more challenging due to the high cost and adverse effects linked to the persistent usage of the drugs. Eighteen participants completed the study by consuming 2g of Hibiscus sabdariffa or oolong tea twice daily for six weeks. We lost an additional twelve participants in the study due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Central arterial stiffness was analyzed as cfPWV using applanation tonometry technique. The HS tea intervention (n=11) had a significant positive effect on SBP (P =0.02), DBP (P =0.001) and HR (P =0.03). Also, the HS tea consumption led to a non-significant (p=0.44) reduction in cfPWV (-0.5m/s) when compared to control tea (+0.3m/s). Although, the decease in cfPWV could be clinically significant, but will need to be verified with larger sample size.

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