## 1 Introduction  
Dietary hempseed is shown to benefit cardiovascular health by reducing blood pressure, exerting antioxidant and antiplatelet activity, and improving serum lipid profiles [1,2]. The bioactive properties of hempseed can be traced to its content of essential fatty acids alpha-linolenic and linoleic acid, protein, fiber, vitamins A and E, multiple minerals, and polyphenols [3,4]. Knowledge of the beneficial health effects of seeds and societal trends toward plant-based diets support the expanding consumption of foods such as seeds [5, 6, 7, 8]. The global hempseed market value continues to rise and is expected to reach USD 1634 million by 2027, a compound annual growth rate of 11.1% [9]. The United States is a leader in the hempseed market, and demand is rising in countries such as China and India [10]. Hempseed's value as a functional food and an important source of protein in vegetarian diets has contributed to the increase in hempseed consumption [1,2,8]. This expansion of hempseed as a dietary component has the potential to impact outcomes such as cardiovascular health.  
Existing research findings on the cardiovascular effects of hempseed product consumption are primarily from relatively short-term animal feeding trials [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17]. Many of these studies report on cardiovascular disease risk factor outcomes such as oxidative stress level [11; 12; 13] and circulating lipid profile [12; 13; 17; 18] rather than blood pressure. [PERSON] et al. showed that obese Zucker rats fed a 12% hempesed diet for 4 weeks displayed reduced lipid peroxidation in plasma and heart tissue and enhanced vasodilation [12]. In a rat model of high-fat diet-induced hypercholesterolemia, [PERSON] et al. observed that 4 weeks of a 10% hempesed diet resulted in significant reductions in serum total cholesterol and triglycerides and improved redox status in aortic tissue [13]. In contrast, only two studies are known to have investigated blood pressure responses to dietary hempesed. For example, in spontaneously hypertensive rats, 8 weeks of dietary enrichment with hempesed protein reduced the rise in blood pressure during growth and 4 weeks of hempesed feeding lowered blood pressure during adulthood [15]. A recent human intervention trial demonstrated significant reductions in 24 h systolic and diastolic blood pressure in mildly hypertensive men and women fed hempesed protein or hempesed protein hydrolysate peptide for 6 weeks [19]. Thus, data on the effect of dietary hempesed on blood pressure, the strongest causal factor in cardiovascular disease development [20], are limited to short-term interventions and hypertensive models. No information is available on the impact of hempesed consumption on the changes in blood pressure that occur during early life [21] and blood pressure in adulthood.  
To address the gap in information regarding the effects on blood pressure of long-term hempesed consumption during development, we measured systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial blood pressure in female C57 BL/6 mice fed hempseed from the early post-weaning period to mid-adullhood. We hypothesized that hempesed enrichment at two concentrations (5% and 15%, representing low and high doses) versus a control diet would modify the age-dependent pattern of blood pressure development and result in lower adult blood pressure. This study was designed to contribute new information about the impact of dietary hempesed on the age-related changes in blood pressure during growth in a healthy mouse model. The results are intended to inform the research and health professional communities on the impact of hempesed consumption during development on blood pressure in order to guide the design of future studies and dietary recommendations.