Probiotic supplements with lactobacilli appear to reduce many of the damaging effects on smokers’ blood vessels, notes researcher Marek Naruszewicz in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Some 36 smokers with an average age of 42 were given either the lactobacillus supplement or a placebo. Six weeks later, persons receiving the probiotic had healthier blood vessels and their systolic blood pressure dropped from 134 to 121 mg Hg.

In addition, levels of plaque-causing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol went down and beneficial high-density lipoproteins increased; levels of fibrinogen (responsible for blood clots) dropped some 21 percent; and levels of the proinflammatory interleukin-6 and white blood cell adhesiveness, all indicators of impaired blood flow, declined by 41 and 40 percent, respectively. Levels of oxidation (caused by excess free radical activity) declined 31 percent.

Key health tip: Few consumers are aware that lactobacilli produce propionic acid, a precursor chemical for the anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen. This might account for some of the probiotic’s benefits. In addition, the authors suggest that our diets are deficient in these beneficial bacteria. They add that supplementing with probiotics is a “nonpharmacological alternative for the management of risk factors and the prevention of atherosclerosis.”