Diet and racial blood pressure puzzle

摘要

Can diet explain the higher blood pressure levels seen in African Americans compared with non-Hispanic whites in the US? By studying metabolites in urine samples from 1559 US citizens, researchers identified differences between the two groups. They then sought links between these metabolites, the foods the participants said they ate, and their blood pressure. Diet could explain between a third and a half of the racial blood pressure difference in men and a quarter in women. Most of this is down to different food choices, but co-author Jeremy Nicholson of Imperial College London says a genetic mechanism may be amplifying the effects of bad diet.