In previous blog posts, I have mentioned resveratrol, an antioxidant found in red grapes and red wine. A recent study suggests that resveratrol also can reverse damage to a small part of the brain stem from excess estrogen and oxidative stress, as well as lower blood pressure:
A small part of the brain stem called the Rostral Ventrolateral Medulla is responsible for controlling heart and blood pressure. This region of the brain can be adversely affected by excessive oxidative stress, which is sometimes caused by excess estrogen. Blood pressure can increase when the RVLM is under oxidative stress.
Resveratrol was shown to not only counteract the damage in the RVLM area of the brainstem caused by the excess superoxide production, but also lower blood pressure.