Black Soybean Improves Vascular Function and Blood Pressure: A Randomized, Placebo Controlled, Crossover Trial in Humans

Abstract

Vascular dysfunction and injurious stimuli such as oxidative stress are closely related to the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Dietary polyphenols are reported to exert beneficial effects in reducing the risk of CVD. Black soybean has been used as a nutritionally rich food and contains abundant polyphenols in its seed coat and grain. Black soybean has many beneficial physiological activities, and its prevention effects on CVD risk were reported mainly in animal experiments. In this study, we performed a randomized, single blind, placebo controlled, crossover trial to investigate the effect of black soybean consumption on the vascular function in healthy humans. Twenty-two healthy adults aged from 30 to 60 completed the four week trial with daily consumption of about a 40 g test material cookie containing 20 g roasted black soybean powder. Body composition, vascular function, biomarkers for oxidative stress, and polyphenol contents in the urine and the plasma were measured. After ingestion of the black soybean cookie, vascular function, which was evaluated by plethysmogram using a Pulse Analyzer®, was improved and systolic blood pressure was decreased. Moreover, nitric oxide levels in plasma and urine were increased, while an oxidative stress biomarker, 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine level, in the plasma was decreased accompanied by an increase in the concentration of polyphenols derived from black soybean in plasma and urine. These results suggest that the antioxidant activity of black soybean polyphenols and an increase in the nitric oxide level may contribute to the improvement of vascular function. Thus, black soybean is an attractive food material for improvement of vascular function through decreasing oxidative stress by its potent antioxidant activity and increasing the nitric oxide level in healthy humans.

Selenium-Enriched Black Soybean Protein Prevents Benzo(a)pyrene-Induced Pyroptotic Colon Damage and Gut Dysbacteriosis

“…Organic Se mainly exists in Se-enriched plants in the form of Se-containing proteins . It is well known that black soybean contains high protein content, and the amino acid composition of the protein is similar to that of animal protein with a balanced ratio. , Ankang in Shaanxi province is one of the Se-rich areas, where Se can be obtained in plants through natural accumulation and biotransformation. Se-enriched black soybean protein (SeBSP) produced in Ankang, Shaanxi province, has been used as a high-quality Se supplement.…”

Five Days of Tart Cherry Supplementation Improves Exercise Performance in Normobaric Hypoxia

“…The underlying mechanisms that account for the present results may be related to NO bioavailability. Recent studies demonstrated that black soybean, which includes rich polyphenols with antioxidant effects, improved vascular stiffness, increased urinary NO 2 and NO 3 levels, and decreased urinary 8-OHdG in healthy adults [ 50 , 51 ]. Moreover, it has been suggested that anthocyanins activate Nrf-2, which increases expressions of detoxifying enzymes and antioxidant enzymes, resulting in the elimination of reactive oxygen species and oxidant-induced injury cells [ 52 , 53 ].…”

Urinary Nitric Oxide Levels Are Associated with Blood Pressure, Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Total Polyphenol Excretion in Adolescents from the SI! Program

“…The same effect was observed in a randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial study with 12 men and 11 women who ingested approximately 40 g/day of cookies made with either 20 g of roasted black soybean powder (containing approximately 20.0 mg of total polyphenols) or 20 g of flour (containing approximately 3.2 mg of total polyphenols) for four weeks, with the same period for washout between treatments. Plasma and urine NO and polyphenol concentration increased in the group consuming the black soybean cookies [ 54 ]. Comparable outcomes were observed in a crossover controlled interventional study with 22 healthy men, in which urine NO and polyphenol levels were higher in those following a healthy diet of polyphenol-rich food compared with a low antioxidant diet with less than two servings of fruit and vegetables per day and avoiding the intake of cocoa products, coffee, and tea.…”