Kefir trials found no clear blood-pressure or CRP reduction
Pooled results were statistically inconclusive for blood pressure and C-reactive protein, although a longer-duration subgroup showed a lower CRP result.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Across the trials, kefir did not produce statistically significant reductions in systolic or diastolic blood pressure or C-reactive protein compared with no kefir. A subgroup involving longer consumption did show lower CRP, but that finding does not establish a consistent overall effect or show that longer use works better.
The abstract does not describe the participants' health conditions, kefir amounts, or details of the control conditions. It also gives no effect estimate or confidence interval for the longer-duration subgroup.
What researchers found
Systolic blood pressure
Weighted mean difference for kefir versus no kefir across trials generally lasting at least 2 weeks; the confidence interval includes no difference.
Separate outcomes
This abstract-based review pooled adult trials of kefir, a fermented milk drink. Blood pressure and CRP were separate outcomes, so the subgroup's CRP finding cannot stand in for a blood-pressure benefit.
What the uncertainty means
The pooled estimates were uncertain: their confidence intervals crossed no difference. That leaves room for effects in either direction and does not prove that kefir and the control conditions were equivalent.
The original publication
The Effect of Kefir Consumption on Blood Pressure and C-Reactive Protein: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.
Rashidbeygi E, Samarin MM, Sheikhhossein F et al.
Endocrinol Diabetes Metab · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41139305
- Record checked
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