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Received Apr 26, 2017; Accepted Jul 26, 2017
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1. Introduction
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) will be responsible for more than three-quarters of all deaths in 2030, among which cardiovascular diseases (CVD) represent a major risk. The mortality rate by CVD should rise from 17.1 million in 2004 to 23.4 million in 2030. The epidemiological data show that lifestyle and dietary habits are the main factors of the high prevalence of hypertension [1].
Conventional medicines used in the treatment of CVD have numerous collateral effects [2], and they are expensive [3]. Thus, there is a requirement for a safer, cheaper, and more powerful alternative. The professional community has increasingly accepted natural medicine, due to advances in understanding the mechanisms by which plants positively influence health and quality of life [4,...