Effects of Medicinal Plants and Secondary Metabolites on the Most Important Risk Factors of Cardiovascular Diseases: A Review

Although the people’s knowledge about cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) has increased, these diseases are still among the main causes of mortality in industrialized and developing countries and communities. For controlling and treating CVDs, both pharmaceutical and non- pharmaceutical methods can be helpful. The high global prevalence of CVDs and associated serious effects on the body organs made them a major health problem in all societies. Concerns about the side effects of synthetic drugs lead to their improper usage and rejection by patients and subsequently a disrupted disease management process. For this reason, today, a new approach is emerging toward medicinal plants, and in fact, they are subjected to extensive research these days. The aim of this review was to introduce medicinal plants and present their action mechanisms, which have been effective in the treatment of CVDs. A literature search was conducted to recruit the articles published in various databases. We also reviewed reference textbooks to elaborate on the mechanisms of action of various plants in the treatment of cardiac diseases and investigate the involved molecular mediators and pathways. Studies have shown that herbal medicines through various mechanisms such as lowering blood pressure, resolving diabetes, improving atherosclerosis, reducing blood fats, inducing nitric oxide, blocking calcium channels, and suppressing the renin-angiotensin pathway can help improve CVDs.