Study: Yogurt Reduces High Blood Pressure Risk

Regular yogurt consumption, especially as a part of an otherwise healthy diet, is associated with a reduced risk of developing high blood pressure (HBP) during the middle adult years, according to a new study.

“Past literature has consistently linked dairy, particularly yogurt intake, on lower BP,” said lead study author Justin Buendia, a PhD candidate at Boston University School of Medicine. “There was very little long-term data on the specific effects of yogurt, and our study provides solid longitudinal evidence that increased consumption of dairy, especially yogurt, is linked with a lower risk of developing HBP in middle-aged Caucasian adults.”

Researchers used repeated measures of diet and lifestyle collected over 2-3 decades among participants without prevalent HBP in the two Nurses’ Health Study cohorts (NHS and NHS II) and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS). After 18-30 years of follow-up, they documented 74609 new cases of HBP in the three cohorts. After adjusting for age, race, family history of HBP, physical activity, energy, and intakes of total protein, fruits and vegetables, milk, and cheese, women who consumed 5 or more servings of yogurt per week (compared with those consuming 0-<1.0 serving per month) had statistically significant 23% (95% CI: 0.70-0.84) and 17% (95% CI: 0.77-0.90) reductions in risk of HBP in the NHS and NHS II, respectively, while men in the HPFS cohort had essentially no reduced risk.

The beneficial effects of yogurt and dairy intakes were strengthened when subjects also consumed a healthy diet, Buendia said. He also noted BMI modifies the effect of dairy consumption and a lower BMI may explain some of the beneficial effects of dairy on HBP.

“The consistent findings for yogurt suggest that this specific dairy food can be recommended with confidence for inclusion into a healthy dietary pattern, which may lessen the necessity of pharmacologic HBP treatment,” concluded Buendia, who stressed “no magic bullet” can alleviate the burden of HBP. “However, more long-term studies are needed to further elucidate what bioactive components in yogurt are driving its antihypertensive effects.”

-Mike Bederka

Reference:

Buendia JR, Hu FB, Singer MR, et al. Long-term yogurt intake is associated with a lower risk of high blood pressure in middle-aged nurses and health professionals. EPI/Lifestyle 2016 Scientific Sessions, Phoenix, Ariz. March 3, 2016.