20 May, 2016

High potato intake linked to high blood pressure

New research, published this week in The BMJ, puts a worrying new slant on a global staple - the humble potato. Researchers link increased potato intake to high blood pressure in adults. The study is only observational, but the findings are likely to spark debate.

Thanks to the potato's hardy nature, the calorie-packed tuber has become an incredibly cheap and useful global product. Potatoes are grown in 125 countries and all 50 U.S. states. There are 4,000 different varieties, and the global crop exceeds 300 million metric tons.

There are some nutritional benefits to the potato, but, as recent research appears to demonstrate, there is no such thing as a free lunch. U.S. government food programs initially restricted starchy vegetables, like the potato, to one cup a week, but in recent years, the potato has returned to U.S. government healthy meals programs. The justification for their inclusion relies on their high potassiumcontent, which is associated with lower blood pressure. Despite the well-documented effect of potassium on blood pressure, the long-term effects of a potato-heavy diet on blood pressure has not previously been studied.

A fresh look at potatoes and health

Scientists at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, both in Massachusetts, investigated links between potato consumption and blood pressure for the first time.

The team looked at potatoes in all their forms - mashed, boiled, chips, and fries. Data were taken from three large American studies, spanning more than 20 years and charting the diets of 187,453 men and women. The team controlled for numerous factors, including weight, smoking status, level of physical activity, and current dietary habits.

After controlling for these factors, the team found that eating four or more servings of mashed, baked, or boiled potatoes per week was associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure, or hypertension, when compared with less than one serving per week. The effect was not found in men. On further investigation, the team found that replacing one serving of potatoes per week with a portion of non-starchy vegetables was associated with a significant drop in blood pressure.

Also, an increased intake of French fries was associated with increased hypertension in both men and women. More surprisingly, those who consumed higher amounts of potato chips did not display an increased risk for hypertension and, in fact, the men who ate more chips showed a reduced hypertension risk.

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com

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