Multivitamins & Blood Pressure: Who Benefits?

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When it comes to lowering blood pressure and hypertension risk, daily multivitamin might small but significant benefits for certain subgroups of people. That’s the finding of a recent investigation by researchers at Mass General Brigham, who analyzed data from 8,905 older adults without hypertension who were part of the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS). The participants took either a multivitamin or a placebo daily for an average of about three years.

Overall, the researchers found that daily multivitamin use did not reduce blood pressure or hypertension risk overall among older adults. However, specific subgroups did benefit. In participants with poorer diet quality and those who had normal blood pressure at the beginning of the study, taking a daily multivitamin was linked to modest reductions in blood pressure and hypertension risk.

Overall, the findings suggest that multivitamins are not universally effective for blood pressure control but may help specific groups with nutritional gaps. Further research is needed to determine whether similar effects apply to younger populations or other nutritional groups.