Levels of food processing affect blood pressure variability, new study reveals

In a recent study published in Nutrition, metabolism and cardiovascular diseases Journal, the researchers used ambulatory blood pressure monitoring to evaluate the relationship between the degree of processed foods consumed and blood pressure variability.

Their findings indicate that a high proportion of processed foods in the diet correlates positively with greater blood pressure variability and extreme nocturnal diving.

Conversely, consumption of unprocessed and minimally processed food reduced blood pressure fluctuations between day and night.

Study: Food consumption by degree of processing is associated with night diving and blood pressure variability: the ELSA-Brasil study. Image Credit: Gorloff-KV/Shutterstock.com

Hypertension and cardiovascular health

Hypertension (HTN) is a global health problem estimated to affect 31.1% of humans and is characterized by a sustained increase in blood pressure (BP). Research has found that HTN is the leading cause of 50% of strokes and coronary heart disease worldwide.

It has been linked to non-modifiable factors such as genetics and age as well as modifiable ones such as lifestyle and food choices.

Of the many tools available for measuring blood pressure and HTN, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is considered the most accurate and informative. Unlike its snapshot recording counterparts, the ABPM can measure and record daily changes.

Researchers can then use the ABPM to assess nocturnal blood pressure drop, morning blood pressure rise, and blood pressure variability, all of which have been found to accurately predict cardiovascular risk.

Previous research has attempted to evaluate the relationship between food processing and overall health. NOVA, a food classification system based on the degree of processing, is an invaluable tool for these studies; however, the association between food processing and HTN remains confusing.

The present study represents the first use of ABPM data within the NOVA framework to elucidate the influence of processed food consumption on cardiovascular health.

About the studio

In the current study, researchers collected ABMP measurements from participants in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brazil). Of the 1,660 participants who undertook ABMP measurements, 845 were considered ineligible and excluded from the analyses.

The 815 individuals included in the study ranged in age from 35 to 70 years and were evenly split between male (49.3%) and female (50.7%) participants.

The researchers collected ABPM data every 20 minutes during daytime hours (6am to 11pm) and every 30 minutes during the night (11pm to 6am). These data were complemented by a multidimensional food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) in which participants’ food and drink consumption was recorded over 12 months.

Participants also maintained and provided a diary containing sleep and wake times. The scientists used this data to estimate blood pressure variability, nocturnal dip and the morning peak before waking.

Consumed food was classified into three types according to the NOVA classification standard: processed foods (PF), unprocessed/minimally processed foods and culinary ingredients (U/MPFCI), and ultra-processed foods (UPF).

PFs included cheese, alcohol, and bread; U/MPFCI included fruits, vegetables, butter, eggs and rice; and UPF included pies, pizzas, and instant noodles.

The percentage of each food category in the respondents’ diets (as a percentage) was used as raw data for analyzes using generalized linear models (GLM).

Study results

Most of the participants were self-reported white individuals between the ages of 45 and 54. Most were highly educated at the master’s level or higher and belonged to the highest Brazilian income tertile.

Overall physical activity in the participants was low, with only 28 percent of them participating in moderate to high levels of physical activity. Binge drinking, defined as more than five drinks within 2 hours, several times a month, was prevalent in 16.2% of participants.

Genetic and environmental predispositions to HTN were found in many participants, with 70% having a family history of HTN and 31% taking antihypertensive medications during the duration of the study.

The proportion of food consumption among participants was highest in U/MPF&CI (63.1%), followed by UPF (24.8%), with PF (10.8%) least consumed, in line with previous estimates. Participants who were male and binge drinking consumed more PF than other sampled individuals.

Analyzes could not reveal associations between category of food consumed and morning rise in blood pressure. Conversely, high PF consumption was correlated with greater blood pressure variability and a greater likelihood of extreme nocturnal blood pressure drops.

Adjusting for confounding variables, including age, sex, race, education, genetic history, or income, did not alter the statistical validity of these results.

A possible explanation for this positive association is the nutritional composition of these foods since in the PF production process it causes a possible loss of water, in addition to the addition of sugar, oil and, mainly, sodium, recognized as a risk factor for ‘increase BP and HTN, turning the original food into a source of nutrients that are associated with worse health outcomes.’

Since blood pressure variability has been shown to independently predict cardiovascular disease and mortality, these findings are essential to help inform humanity about the benefits of U/MPF&CI consumption over PF.

Although the ABPM is widely accepted as the most accurate tool for measuring blood pressure, its major limitation lies in the expense associated with its implementation, and future studies with large sample sizes may need to account for this demerit at the outset of their design. of study.

Conclusions

This study presents the first evidence that high consumption of processed foods is related to greater blood pressure variability, especially during the nighttime hours. This implicates the demerits of PF consumption and reinforces the importance of lifestyle and dietary choices for cardiovascular health.

Our results also indicated that, contrary to expectations, UPF consumption was inversely associated with the non-dipping pattern and extreme dipping.”

The authors were unable to adequately explain this confusion, which could pave the way for future research on ultra-processed foods and help introduce new processing techniques that preserve the beneficial properties of foods.