Effect of B Vitamins from Diet on Hypertension

• Published in: Archives of medical research Vol. 48; no. 2; pp. 187 - 194
• Main Authors: Liu, Ruru, Mi, Baibing, Zhao, Yaling, Li, Qiang, Yan, Hong, Dang, Shaonong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.02.2017
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Asian Continental Ancestry Group; Blood Pressure; China; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diet; Dietary B vitamins; Female; Folic Acid - administration & dosage; Humans; Hypertension; Hypertension - ethnology; Hypertension - physiopathology; Internal Medicine; Log-binomial regression; Male; Micro-nutrition status; Middle Aged; Risk; Rural Chinese adults; Rural Population; Vitamin B 12 - administration & dosage; Vitamin B 6 - administration & dosage; Vitamin B Complex - administration & dosage; Young Adult; Hypertension; Rural Chinese adults; Dietary B vitamins; Micro-nutrition status; Log-binomial regression
• ISSN: 0188-4409; 1873-5487
• DOI: 10.1016/j.arcmed.2017.03.011

Background In western populations, a higher level of dietary B vitamins intake has been associated with a lower risk of hypertension. However, data in Chinese is limited, whose B vitamins consumption is low and rates of hypertension are high. Aim of the Study To investigate whether the three B vitamins are associated with hypertension in rural Chinese. Methods Cross-sectional survey among 2241 rural Chinese aged 18–80 years was conducted in northwestern China in 2010. Blood pressure was measured by trained medical staff and dietary nutrients were assessed with a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Results 592 cases of hypertension were newly diagnosed. The deficiency proportions were 20.5% for vitamin B-6, 43.9% for folate and 98.5% for B-12. For females, participants in the highest quartile of B-6 intake had a significantly lower risk of hypertension (OR = 0.69; 95% CI: 0.50–0.93; p for trend <0.05). For males, the multivariable OR for the same comparison was 0.75 (95% CI: 0.56–0.99, p for trend >0.05). No significant associations were observed between B-12, folate intake and hypertension. For females, the highest quartile of both folate and B-6 intake was associated with a reduced risk of hypertension (OR = 0.53; 95% CI: 0.29–0.89), compared with in the middle quartile of both vitamins. Conclusions Higher intake of vitamin B-6 is independently associated with lower risk of hypertension in Chinese rural adults. Among females with high folate intake, the association between B-6 and hypertension was strongest. Additional studies are warrant to establish the causal inference.