A modified Japanese diet promises to lower your blood pressure, the study was found

In the last article published in Researchers examined the relationship between modified and traditional diet patterns in Japan, combining a diet with the dissemination of hypertension in 12 213 Japanese employees.

Their findings indicate that although a traditional Japanese diet was not significantly associated with hypertension, in accordance with a modified Japanese diet, which contains more whole grains, dairy, raw vegetables and fruits, showed a suggestive reverse connection with hypertension.

Background

It is estimated that hypertension affects 1.28 billion adults around the world, which significantly contributes to stroke and heart disease. Diet habits, especially sodium consumption, are closely related to blood pressure.

This led to health authorities, such as the International Society of Hypertension and the World Health Organization, recommend increasing the consumption of vegetables and fruits and reduce salt intake in managing this condition. Global dietary interventions, in particular Mediterranean and dietary approaches to stopping nutrition plans of hypertension (DASH), seem particularly effective, and regional eating habits play an important role.

A traditional Japanese diet, rich in salty foods and relying largely on ingredients such as Miso, Soy, Rigs and White Rycz, is associated with increased blood pressure due to the high sodium content, despite other positive documented health results. However, salt consumption has dropped since World War II, and the dietary landscape of Japan changes, covering more western foods, such as fruit and dairy products.

About the study

Researchers have examined whether observing a traditional diet or a healthier, modified Japanese diet is associated with hypertension of Japanese employees. They used a cross-sectional or observation examination for data collected in 2018-2020 to study Epidemiology Collaboration on professional health (J-Ecoh).

The study included 12,213 employees (88.1% of men, average age 42.2) from five companies that filled in lifestyle questionnaire and health control. People with missing diets or other accompanying variables and people with cardiovascular or cancer were excluded. Blood pressure was measured during control, and hypertension was noticed if the systolic pressure was greater than 140 mmHg, the diastolic pressure was greater than 90 mmHg, or the participant used hypertension.

For diet assessment, food frequency questionnaires with 28 positions were used. Scientists used these data to generate two dietary results, based on the median of consumption for each element, with each element received one point. The traditional Japanese diet result was based on nine objects: green tea, salt food, fish, seaweed, mushrooms, vegetables, soy products, miso soups and white rice. The modified diet result was based on 11 objects, adding raw vegetables, fruits and dairy products, reversing the salty food result and replacing white rice full of grain.

Scientists used the Poisson regression model to examine the spread of hypertension in various quarter of dietary adhesion, including accompanying variables, such as professional factors, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and demographics.

Arrangements

Based on data 12,13 employees, scientists compared those who observed modified Japanese diets with people with more traditional nutritional patterns. Preliminary analyzes suggest that higher compliance with both diets was associated with lower hypertension indicators.

However, after taking into account variables in the model, only a modified diet showed a suggestive opposite connection with hypertension (PR for the highest vs. the lowest quarter: 0.94, 95% CI 0.87–1.01), and the influence of a traditional diet on hypertension has become statistically irrelevant. Stratified models indicated that this opposite relationship was more clear in people of less than 13 years of education. Among people with a lower body weight indicator (BMI <23 kg/m²), traditional diet was positively associated with hypertension.

Conclusions

These discoveries suggest that a modified Japanese diet, which puts more emphasis on food rich in potassium and fiber with a lower sodium content, can be better to control blood pressure. It can counteract the effects of sodium by promoting sodium excretion and improving the balance of nutrients.

However, the study did not show a clear relationship between hypertension and the consequence of a traditional Japanese diet, probably because of the balance between foods that reduce blood pressure (e.g. vegetables, seaweed) and salty food. Changes in dietary habits over the years and the relatively younger age of participants (42 years old) can explain the weaker size of the effects.

Despite the use of approved tools and high sample, the cross -sectional design means that scientists cannot end the cause and effect. The character of dietary data he reports is another problem, as is the possibility of unchanged variables. Finally, these findings cannot be generalized on other groups derived from mainly men’s population (88.1%) working for large companies.

Thus, while a modernized Japanese diet can help prevent hypertensive hypertension while maintaining cultural food practices, further longitudinal studies are needed to confirm these findings.