DOES VITAMIN-C REDUCE BLOOD-PRESSURE - RESULTS OF A LARGE STUDY OF PEOPLE AGED 65 OR OLDER

Objective To characterize relationships among blood pressure, pulse ra te, vitamin C status and other protective and risk factors for older B ritish people, from a national survey, Design A cross-sectional analys is of survey data. Setting A population study, representative of mainl and Britain. Subjects Among 914 people of both sexes living in the com munity, 373 were taking blood-pressure-lowering drugs and were therefo re excluded from the analyses. Interventions Completion of an intervie w on health, lifestyle and dietary habits, recording of a 4-day dietar y record, anthropometry and taking of a blood sample to determine haem atological and biochemical status. Main outcome measures Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, pulse-rate, indices bf micronutrient status including plasma ascorbate concentration, nutrient intake and haemato logy, Results Plasma ascorbate concentration was inversely correlated to systolic and diastolic blood pressures and pulse rate. Other covari ates of blood pressure included age, sex, domicile, plasma retinol, fi brinogen and gamma-tocopherol concentrations, erythrocyte count, proth rombin time and urine sodium:creatinine ratio. Covariates of pulse rat e included sex, domicile, plasma fibrinogen and platelet count Blood p ressure was also correlated to intake of vitamin C, Conclusions Plasma ascorbate concentration and intake of vitamin C are covariates of blo od pressure in older people living in Britain. New intervention studie s are now needed, to test for possible causalities. I Hypertens 16:925 -932 (C) 1998 Lippincott-Raven Publishers.