Association Between Dietary Total Antioxidant Capacity and Hypertension in Pre- and Postmenopausal Women; Finding From RaNCD Cohort Study

Background: Diet is one of the influential factors in developing hypertension. Moreover, the role of antioxidants in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) has been identified. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) is a valid tool to assess intake antioxidants from diet. The aim of this study was to examine the association between TAC and hypertension in pre- and postmenopausal women. Methods: : In this cross-sectional study was used baseline data of the Ravansar Non-Communicable Disease (RaNCD) cohort study. The TAC was calculated using food items of the food frequency questionnaire. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression were applied to estimates odds ratio. Results: A total of 5,067 women were included in the study. The mean daily intake of refined grains, legumes, white meat, nuts, omega-3, and omega-6, vitamins of B1, B2, B6 and D were significantly higher among women non-hypertensive compared to hypertensive (P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression showed the odds of hypertension in the third quartile of dietary TAC was 0.71 (95% CI: 0.52, 0.96) times and the fourth quartile of dietary TAC was 0.73 (95% CI: 0.53, 0.98) times lower compared to the first quartile, in pre/perimenopausal women. There was no association between TAC and hypertension in postmenopausal women. Conclusion: A high dietary TAC was associated to a decreased risk of hypertension in pre/perimenopausal women. We suggest a diet rich in natural antioxidants as it may help prevent developing of hypertension before menopausal.