The Association of Dietary Indices, Antioxidant Intake and Bioactive Foods with Hypertension in Diabetic Patients: A Cross-Sectional Analysis regarding Fasa PERSIAN Cohort Study

More than half of diabetic patients finally develop hypertension which remarkably increases the risk of multiple complications. This study aims to assess the association between dietary indices, antioxidant intake and bioactive foods, and hypertension in diabetic patients.

This was a cross-sectional population-based study on baseline data of Fasa PERSIAN cohort study which was conducted on adults in Sheshdeh town and its 24 villages, in Iran from 2014 to 2016. This research included 1229 patients with diabetes. A food frequency questionnaire was used to assess three dietary indices (phytochemical index, dietary inflammatory index, and alternative healthy eating index-2010), antioxidant intake, and consumption of bioactive foods. Other lifestyle and demographic factors were also assessed. Multivariable binary logistic regression was performed to assess the associations between independent variables and hypertension.

Higher intake of garlic was significantly associated with lower odds of having hypertension after adjusting for potential confounders [adjusted odds ratio (AOR):0.84, 95% confidence interval (CI):0.73-0.97]. Furthermore, female gender [AOR:1.77, 95% CI:1.26-2.49], being older [AOR:1.09, 95% CI:1.08-1.11], having a family history of hypertension [AOR:2.42, 95% CI:1.86-3.16] and higher body mass index (BMI) [AOR:1.1, 95% CI:1.07-1.13] were predictors of having hypertension. Neither dietary indices nor antioxidant intakes were associated with having hypertension in the crude or adjusted models.

Garlic consumption is negatively associated with hypertension in diabetic patients. However, female gender, old age, family history of hypertension and higher BMI are positively associated with this condition. Therefore, modifying diet and weight management are recommended for controlling hypertension in this group of patients.