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(Hypertension. 2002;40:789.)
© 2002 American Heart Association, Inc.

Editorial Commentaries

Blood Pressure Effects of Vitamin C

What’s the Key Question?

From the Duke Hypertension Center and the Sarah W. Stedman Center for Nutritional Studies, Duke University Medical Center (L.P.S.), Durham, NC; and the Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (C.M.L.), Bethesda, Md.

Correspondence to Laura P. Svetkey, Box 3075, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710. E-mail svetk001@mc.duke.edu

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

Some, but not all, observational data concerning diet and health suggest an inverse relationship between dietary vitamin C and cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality.¹ If such a relationship exists, vitamin C presumably protects against CVD through its antioxidant properties, possibly by preventing lipid peroxidation. Others have suggested that vitamin C might protect against CVD through effects on blood pressure (BP) and arterial stiffness.^2–6 Such an effect is suggested by epidemiologic associations noted in some populations,⁷ but the role of this nutrient in BP regulation remains unclear, owing to design issues and/or confounding variables. For example, a recent analysis of the prospective Western Electric study² suggests that low antioxidant intake is associated with the rise in BP with age. In that study, intake of both vitamin C and ß-carotene were combined to form an "antioxidant score," so the effect of vitamin C alone was not estimated. Even in studies that isolate vitamin C intake, results are inconclusive: not all studies demonstrate an inverse relationship between vitamin C and BP; key nutrients (eg, sodium) are not accurately measured by most diet survey methods; and more importantly, these observational studies are potentially confounded by intake of other nutrients that affect BP. For example, in the Western Electric study, the investigators did not adjust for intake of potassium, a nutrient with well-known BP-lowering effects,⁹ which is found in many antioxidant-rich foods. Thus, although a relationship between vitamin C intake and BP is suggested, the epidemiologic data are inconclusive.

Randomized controlled trials offer many . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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