Do bananas lower blood pressure?

Not on the evidence so far. A US federal review by AHRQ found no evidence that raising potassium through food alone changes blood pressure in adults, based on four randomized trials it rated low strength. We found no systematic review of bananas and blood pressure and no trial that tested whole bananas with blood pressure as its main outcome. The two small trials that came closest, both in people with normal blood pressure, saw no change. Potassium itself does lower blood pressure in people with hypertension, mostly when it comes as a supplement, and the trials measure it in steps of about 50 mmol a day, which is around five bananas on top of a usual diet.

Unsettled. Whether eating bananas lowers blood pressure in people who have hypertension has not been tested. The banana trials recruited healthy people with normal readings and ran for six days or for two hours. Nobody has run the trial that would answer the question people are asking.

Established. Extra potassium lowers blood pressure in adults with hypertension. Across 22 randomized trials in 1,606 adults, systolic pressure fell by 3.49 mm Hg and diastolic by 1.96 mm Hg, an effect seen in people with hypertension and not in those without it. Most of that potassium came from supplements.

What the trials found

Bananas themselves

In a randomized crossover trial, 35 healthy adults aged about 32 ate two diets for six days each. The high-potassium diet was built on bananas and potatoes, the low-potassium one on apples, rice and pasta. Urinary potassium differed by 48 mmol a day between them, and blood pressure did not differ. Artery dilation improved by 0.6 percent on the banana and potato diet. The abstract does not say how many bananas people ate, and we could not get the full text.

In a second crossover trial, 32 volunteers with normal blood pressure ate a meal with 36 mmol of potassium, which the authors describe as about as much as 2.5 servings of banana, or a meal with 6 mmol. There was no significant difference in blood pressure between the meals over the next two hours. The potassium was added to the meal, so the banana here is only a way of describing the dose.

Potassium, the reason anyone asks

A 2025 dose-response meta-analysis of 10 randomized trials of potassium supplements found that each extra 50 mmol a day lowered systolic pressure by 5.3 mm Hg and diastolic by 3.62 mm Hg in people with hypertension. In people without hypertension the same dose lowered them by 0.5 and 0.12 mm Hg, which is close to nothing. The authors caution that ten trials is a small base. One raw banana of 4.4 oz (126 g) carries about 411 mg of potassium, roughly 10.5 mmol, so 50 mmol a day is about five bananas on top of what you already eat.

More is not always better. A dose-response meta-analysis of 32 trials, mostly in adults with hypertension taking supplements, found the fall in pressure weakened once the extra potassium passed about 30 mmol a day, roughly three bananas' worth, and pressure rose again above about 80 mmol.

What happens in everyday life

Observational data give little more. The INTERMAP study measured diet and blood pressure in 4,680 adults aged 40 to 59 in Japan, China, the United Kingdom and the United States. Bananas went with diastolic pressure 1.01 mm Hg lower only among East Asian banana eaters, with an interval from 0.02 to 1.88 mm Hg lower, and that is one subgroup result among many comparisons. Across the whole study, raw fruit showed no consistent link with blood pressure.

In a 10-year follow-up of 2,480 American adults with hypertension, those who ate bananas three to six times a week had a 24 percent lower risk of death from any cause than those who ate them less than once a month. The hazard ratio was 0.76, with an interval from 0.59 to 0.97. That study measured deaths, not blood pressure, and people who eat more bananas differ in other ways that the analysis may not have captured.

Who should be careful

Not for everyone. According to the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, people with chronic kidney disease, or taking ACE inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics, can develop high blood potassium even from dietary intakes below the adequate intake. ACE inhibitors and potassium-sparing diuretics are themselves used to treat high blood pressure, so anyone taking them, or living with kidney disease, should agree a plan to eat several bananas a day with whoever treats them.

The approved label for lisinopril, a common blood pressure drug, warns that potassium-sparing diuretics such as spironolactone can increase the risk of high blood potassium. The label speaks about those drugs and says nothing about food, and that silence is not a statement that extra potassium from food is safe for someone on both. The 32-trial analysis above adds one more caution for anyone tempted to overdo it: in those supplement trials, above about 80 mmol a day of extra potassium, blood pressure went up.

What expert bodies say

WHO strongly recommends increasing potassium from food to reduce blood pressure in adults. That recommendation is about potassium from food in general, and it does not name bananas. The AHRQ review quoted at the top is the one agency finding that tests food-only potassium directly, and it found no evidence of an effect in four trials. We found no position from NIH, WHO or EFSA on bananas and blood pressure specifically.

How we searched

What would change this answer

• A randomized trial of whole bananas in adults with hypertension, with blood pressure as the main outcome and long enough to matter. None is registered.
• More trials of potassium from food rather than tablets. The AHRQ conclusion rests on four, at low strength.
• The full text of the banana and potato trial, which would say how many bananas it took to move urinary potassium by 48 mmol a day.

The fruit itself, its potassium and how it compares with other sources, is on the banana page.

Sources

1. ev-bbp-01 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of RCTs · n = 10 RCTs
   Specifically, a 50 mmol/day increase in urinary potassium excretion was associated with a 0.5 mmHg reduction in systolic BP (SBP) and a 0.12 mmHg reduction in diastolic BP (DBP) in subjects without hypertension, and a 5.3 mmHg reduction in SBP and a 3.62 mmHg reduction in DBP in subjects with hypertension.
   
   Who: adults in RCTs of potassium supplementation alone with 24-h urinary potassium excretion, published 2000 to 2024; 6 trials in hypertension, 4 without
   Effect: per +50 mmol/day urinary potassium: SBP -5.3 and DBP -3.62 mm Hg with hypertension; SBP -0.5 and DBP -0.12 mm Hg without hypertension
   Certainty: Potassium supplements, not bananas; 10 RCTs, the authors themselves caution about the small number. 50 mmol ≈ 5 bananas a day.
   Clin Kidney J, 2025, Effect of changes in potassium intake on blood pressure: a dose-response meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials (2000-2024) · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
2. ev-bbp-02 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · systematic review and meta-analyses of RCTs and cohort studies · n = 1606
   Increased potassium intake reduced systolic blood pressure by 3.49 (95% confidence interval 1.82 to 5.15) mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure by 1.96 (0.86 to 3.06) mm Hg in adults, an effect seen in people with hypertension but not in those without hypertension.
   
   Who: adults in randomized controlled trials of increased potassium intake
   Effect: systolic -3.49 mm Hg (95% CI 1.82 to 5.15), diastolic -1.96 mm Hg (0.86 to 3.06); effect in hypertensive, not normotensive, adults
   Certainty: Potassium mostly through supplements; banana as a source was not analyzed separately.
   BMJ, 2013 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
3. ev-bbp-03 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · systematic review by a US federal agency with strength-of-evidence grading · n = 4 RCTs
   We did not find evidence to support an effect of increasing potassium through changes in food intake alone on BP in adults, based on four RCTs (low SoE).
   
   Who: adults in RCTs of increased potassium intake, AHRQ comparative effectiveness review
   Effect: no evidence that increasing potassium through food intake alone affects BP in adults (4 RCTs, low SoE)
   Certainty: Closest to the question "does potassium work specifically from food"; search up to 2017.
   AHRQ, 2018, Sodium and Potassium Intake: Effects on Chronic Disease Outcomes and Risks (Comparative Effectiveness Review 206) · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the section
4. ev-bbp-04 · Randomized controlled trial(s) · randomized crossover trial · n = 35
   There were no significant differences in BP, PWV, AI, ICAM-1, ADMA or endothelin-1 between the interventions.
   
   Who: 35 healthy men and women aged 32 ± 12 y; 2 × 6-day diets, bananas and potatoes (high K) vs apples and rice/pasta (low K)
   Effect: urinary potassium difference 48 ± 32 mmol/d; no significant difference in BP; FMD +0.6% ± 1.5% (P = 0.03)
   Certainty: The most direct RCT with banana, but healthy normotensives and only 6 days; the number of bananas is not named in the abstract (no full text in PMC).
   Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis, 2014 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
5. ev-bbp-05 · Randomized controlled trial(s) · randomized double-blind crossover trial · n = 32
   No significant differences in BP were observed between meals.
   
   Who: 32 normotensive volunteers; meal with 36 mmol potassium vs 6 mmol potassium, measured fasting and 30 to 120 min after
   Effect: no significant BP difference between meals; less postprandial fall in FMD after the high-potassium meal (P < 0.05)
   Certainty: A single meal; potassium as a supplement to food, banana only as a dose equivalent.
   Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis, 2014 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
6. ev-bbp-06 · Observational data · cross-sectional study · n = 4680
   Among East Asian banana consumers, banana intake was inversely associated with diastolic BP (-1.01 mm Hg; 95% CI: -1.88, -0.02).
   
   Who: men and women aged 40-59 y from Japan, China, the United Kingdom and the United States; East Asian banana consumers
   Effect: diastolic BP -1.01 mm Hg (95% CI -1.88 to -0.02) among East Asian banana consumers
   Certainty: Cross-sectional, one subgroup result among many comparisons.
   Am J Clin Nutr, 2013 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
7. ev-bbp-07 · Observational data · cross-sectional study · n = 4680
   Consistent associations were not found between raw fruit and fruit juice consumption of individuals and BP.
   
   Who: 4,680 men and women aged 40-59 y in 4 countries, four 24-h dietary recalls and 8 BP readings each
   Effect: no consistent associations of raw fruit or fruit juice with BP
   Am J Clin Nutr, 2013 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
8. ev-bbp-08 · Observational data · prospective cohort study · n = 2480
   Likewise, consuming bananas three to six times per week also led to a comparable outcome (HR = 0.76, 95%CI: 0.59-0.97, p = 0.027).
   
   Who: US adults with diagnosed hypertension, NHANES 2003-2006, 10-year National Death Index follow-up
   Effect: HR 0.76 (95% CI 0.59-0.97) for bananas 3-6 times/week vs less than once/month; 658 deaths
   Certainty: Mortality, not blood pressure; observational, residual confounding possible.
   Front Nutr, 2024, The correlation between fruit intake and all-cause mortality in hypertensive patients: a 10-year follow-up study · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
9. ev-bbp-09 · Position of an expert body · national food survey nutrient database · n = —
   Banana, raw, FNDDS code 63107010, fdc_id 2709224: Potassium, K 326 MG per 100 g; 1 banana 126 g, 410.8 MG
   
   Who: USDA survey database record for raw banana
   Effect: potassium 326 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g); 410.8 mg per 1 banana (126 g)
   Certainty: Recalculation to mmol: 39.1 mg/mmol.
   USDA FNDDS, food code 63107010, Banana, raw (fdc_id 2709224) · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the dataset
10. ev-bbp-10 · Position of an expert body · WHO guideline (NUGAG, GRADE) · n = —
    WHO recommends an increase in potassium intake from food for reduction of blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke and coronary heart disease in adults (strong recommendation1 ).
    
    Who: adults, WHO guideline
    Effect: strong recommendation to increase potassium intake from food; at least 90 mmol/day suggested for adults
    Certainty: Recommendation about dietary potassium in general, banana not named separately.
    WHO, 2012, Guideline: potassium intake for adults and children · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the section
11. ev-bbp-11 · Position of an expert body · government fact sheet · n = —
    However, in people with impaired urinary potassium excretion due to chronic kidney disease or the use of certain medications, such as angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics, even dietary potassium intakes below the AI can cause hyperkalemia [11].
    
    Who: people with impaired urinary potassium excretion
    Effect: no UL for potassium in healthy people; hyperkalemia risk with CKD, ACE inhibitors, potassium-sparing diuretics
    Certainty: Precisely those who treat blood pressure with an ACE inhibitor should be careful with a "potassium" diet.
    NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Potassium Fact Sheet for Health Professionals · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the section
12. ev-bbp-12 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · dose-response meta-analysis of RCTs · n = 32 trials
    We observed a U-shaped relationship between 24-hour active and control arm differences in potassium excretion and BP levels, with weakening of the BP reduction effect above differences of 30 mmol/d and a BP increase above differences ≈80 mmol/d.
    
    Who: mostly adults with hypertension in trials of potassium supplementation (30 to 140 mmol/day), at least 4 weeks
    Effect: U-shaped curve: benefit weakens above a 30 mmol/day difference in potassium excretion; BP increase above about 80 mmol/day
    Certainty: 30 mmol ≈ 3 bananas, 80 mmol ≈ 8 bananas above usual; data from supplements.
    J Am Heart Assoc, 2020 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
13. ev-bbp-13 · Position of an expert body · FDA-approved drug label · n = —
    Potassium-sparing diuretics (spironolactone, amiloride, triamterene, and others) can increase the risk of hyperkalemia.
    
    Who: patients taking lisinopril
    Effect: hyperkalemia risk with potassium-sparing diuretics; monitor serum potassium
    Lisinopril tablets, FDA-approved label (DailyMed), effective 2023-08-18 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the section