Over the years, readers have told us about using grape juice to manage a range of conditions. Some people mix it with plant pectin (Certo) to ease the pain of arthritic joints. Others report it soothes plantar fasciitis. We have even heard from people who use it to fight off colds. Could this popular beverage benefit the heart?
Grape Juice and Cardiovascular Benefits:
Q. I was born in 1945 and was diagnosed as a baby with what at that time was called a heart murmur. I have had a racing heartbeat from time to time that lasts less than a minute. Sometimes my heart thumps hard once.
I have lived with this all my life. I am active and always have been. I have never fainted, had shortness of breath nor felt chest pain. It is just part of my life. My father died after having had five heart attacks in his seventies and my grandmother on my maternal side had a pacemaker and lived to be eighty-nine.
I read that grape juice helps make your blood less sticky, so for three years I have been drinking two eight-ounce glasses of grape juice every day. Recently I realized that I have less of these heart rate symptoms. As a bonus, the varicose vein in my left leg is less pronounced than it has been for years.
I take no prescription drugs, but I do take vitamins daily, try to eat right and I remain active. Am I imagining the benefits of grape juice?
What Does the Scientific Evidence Show?
A. There is evidence that “whole grape products” can lower blood pressure (Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases, Oct. 2023). Moreover, a study published in the journal Circulation (Sept. 7, 1999) demonstrated that when volunteers drank purple grape juice for two weeks, their blood vessels were more flexible and blood flow improved. We have not seen evidence that it can correct abnormal heart rhythms.
All the same, we do not think you are imagining the benefits of grape juice. An in-depth analysis in the journal Nutrients concluded that Concord grape juice provides cardiovascular benefits and may also be helpful against cancer and cognitive decline (Nutrients, Dec. 2015). Because it is naturally high in sugar, however, people with diabetes may need to exercise caution.
