Dietary sugar intake and risk of hypertension

The Buzz: Could the rise in rates of hypertension in industrialized nations be correlated with excess dietary sugar? 

Citation: Journal of American Society of Nephrology 21: 2010, “Increased Fructose Associates with Elevated Blood Pressure.” 

Summary: The prevalence of hypertension has risen dramatically in the last century, going from 5-10% of the population in at the turn of the century, to approximately 31% of the adult population today.  Consumption of dietary sugar has also spiked, though the two have been inconsistently linked. To further investigate that connection, this cross-sectional analysis used data from 4528 adults without history of hypertension participating in  the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2003-2006), reporting  that consumption of excess sugar equivalent of  2.5 soft drinks per day was “independently and significantly associated with higher odds of elevated blood pressure (odds ratio 2.10; 95% CI 1.20 to 3.61).”  Speculated mechanisms included stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, inhibition of endothelial nitric oxide synthase activity, and stimulation of uric acid. Study authors noted a few limitations, mainly that cause-effect relationships cannot be deduced from cross-sectional analysis and that self-reporting of consumption could have led to mis-classification or under-reporting.  However, the large sample of participants was representative of the US adult population and researchers made attempts to isolate the impact of fructose intake by controlling for a large number of confounding factors. 

Commentary: This research provides more weight to the suggestion that added sugars have a deleterious effect on cardiovascular health. 

By: Jeannie Bianchi, L.Ac.