Blood pressure drug 'combats racism' as an unusual side-effect

By Claire Bates UPDATED: 07:07 EST, 10 March 2012

A common heart disease drug may have the unusual side-effect of combating racism, a new study suggests.

Volunteers given the beta-blocker, used to lower heart rates, scored lower on a standard psychological test of 'implicit' racist attitudes.

They appeared to be less racially prejudiced at a subconscious level than another group treated with a 'dummy' placebo pill.

Unusual finding: A heart drug was found to have the unusual side-effect of reducing racist feeling in participants

Scientists believe the discovery can be explained by the fact that racism is fundamentally founded on fear.

Propranolol acts both on nerve circuits that govern automatic functions such as heart rate, and the part of the brain involved in fear and emotional responses. The drug is also used to treat anxiety and panic.

Experimental psychologist Dr Sylvia Terbeck, from Oxford University, who led the study published in the journal Psychopharmacology, said: 'We wanted to study the neurobiology of prejudice.

'Our results offer new evidence about the processes in the brain that shape implicit racial bias.

'Implicit racial bias can occur even in people with a sincere belief in equality. Given the key role that such implicit attitudes appear to play in discrimination against other ethnic groups, and the widespread use of propranolol for medical purposes, our findings are also of considerable ethical interest.'

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Blood pressure drug 'combats racism' as an unusual side-effect