Abstract P169: Long-term Yogurt Intake is Associated with a Lower Risk of High Blood Pressure in Middle-aged Nurses and Health Professionals

While dairy products have been shown to reduce the risk for high blood pressure (HBP) in at-risk adults, few long-term studies have examined independent effects of yogurt consumption, a dietary component that may have particularly beneficial effects on blood pressure. We 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) to examine this question. After 18 to 30 years of follow-up, we documented 74,609 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. To determine whether the effect of yogurt consumption might be explained or modified by other healthy dietary factors, the independent and combined effects of yogurt and a DASH diet score (excluding yogurt from the calculation of that score) were examined. Those in the highest tertile of the DASH score who did not consume yogurt had 15%, 29%, and 15% reductions in HBP risk, respectively, in the two NHS and the HPFS cohorts. The beneficial effects of yogurt intake were modified by a higher DASH score. In these analyses, the beneficial effects of 5 or more servings of yogurt per day on HBP risk were strongest among those in the highest tertile of DASH scores (NHS: HR=0.66; 95% CI: 0.59-0.75; NHS II: HR=0.68; 95%CI: 0.62-0.75; HPFS: HR=0.75; 95% CI: 0.64-0.88). Results were partially attenuated when controlling for BMI. These analyses from three large, longitudinal cohorts suggest that regular yogurt consumption, especially as a part of an otherwise healthy diet, is associated with a reduced risk of developing HBP during the middle adult years. These beneficial effects may be partially explained by intermediate effects on BMI.