P2-155 Consumption of ultra-processed food is associated with blood pressure in hypertensive individuals

Abstract

Introduction The consumption of the ultra-processed food has been associated with a growing prevalence of chronic diseases. Objective To assess the effect of processed food consumption on systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure among hypertensive patients. Methods This cross-sectional study enrolled 125 patients, aged 30–80 years, followed-up on the outpatient Hypertension Clinic from a reference Center (Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre), in southern Brazil. Food intake was assessed by 24-h dietary recall administered four times one week apart. Food items were aggregated by the types of processing into unprocessed (group 1), culinary foods (group 2), and ultra-processed foods (group 3). The intake was calculated by the number of items per group consumed daily and categorised in quartiles. Generalised Estimated Equation (GEE) was adopted in the analysis. Results The consumption amount of unprocessed and culinary food was not associated with blood pressure. Among ultra-processed foods, the comparison between patients in the first and the forth quartile showed a difference of 15.8±4.0 mm Hg in SBP (p<0.01) and 6.3±2.3 in DBP (p=0.02), controlled for age, gender and the consumption of both unprocessed and culinary food. No difference was observed for the 2nd and 3rd quartiles vs de 1st one. Conclusion The ultra-processed foods consumption can affect SBP and DBP of hypertensive individuals.