THE EFFECTS OF A VEGETARIAN DIET ON

BLOOD PRESSUREBy: Bethany Howes, Melinda Mollenkopf, and

Dawn Simon

PURPOSE

Unique topic Having a healthy blood pressure is important Increasing incidence of hypertension Promote awareness of how a vegetarian diet

effects blood pressure

SEARCH STRATEGY

Databases used: EBSCO, The Archives of Internal Medicine, The Cambridge Journal Database, OhioLink, and PubMed Central

Google Scholar Key words/phrases: “vegetarian diet and

blood pressure,” “vegetarian diet and effects on blood pressure,” “vegetarians and hypertension,” and “hypertension vegetarian diets”

SEARCH CRITERIA

Articles written in English

Articles written between the years of 2000 to 2009

Articles pertaining to vegetarian diet or meat consumption effects on blood pressure

Words: “or”, “while”, and “using”

Articles containing: diets that didn’t effect blood pressure, systematic reviews, and written prior to the year 2000

Articles that didn’t contain blood pressure values

Articles written in any language other that English

Inclusion Criteria Exclusion Criteria

COMPLICATIONS ENCOUNTERED

Most articles written in the 1980’s Limited amount of articles on topic within the

last ten years Several articles weren’t limited to specific

vegetarian articles, but similar diets, such as the lacto-ovo vegetarians, etc.

Finding articles that meet assignment criteria

HYPERTENSION PREVENTION THROUGH VEGETARIANISM

Blood pressure decreases in vegetarian diets high in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which promotes vasodilation and decreases viscosity of blood (Varshney, Bedi, & Bhandari, 2005).

Increased consumption of fruits and vegetables decreases systolic and diastolic blood pressures (Adebawo et al., 2006).

Vegetarians showed to have a lower blood pressure verses non-vegetarians (Appleby, Davey, and Key, 2002).

HOW A VEGETARIAN DIET PREVENTS/ TREATS HYPERTENSION

High vegetable diet can prevent hypertension (Appleby, Davey, and Key, 2002). Soluble fiber can prevent hypertension (Adebawo

et al., 2006). Vegetarians have shown an incidence of

having a lower blood pressure (Elliot et al., 2006).

Non-vegetarians typically have a higher blood pressure than vegetarians (Varshney et al., 2005).

RED MEAT EFFECTS

The higher the consumption of red meat the greater the increase in blood pressure (Tzoulaki et al., 2008).

Steve. (2007). [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.gimmecorn.com.

Eating lean red meat can reduce blood pressure (Hodgson et al., 2006).

4pack. (2009). [Web]. Retrieved from http://4pack.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/redmeat.jpg.

Stated by Tzoulaki et al. Stated by Hodgson et al.

LIFESTYLE CHANGES EFFECTING BLOOD PRESSURE

Moderate exercise as well as stress management (Appleby, Davey, and Key, 2002)

The above changes along with a proper diet can lower blood pressure (Slavicek et al., 2008).

A healthy lifestyle can help to prevent hypertension as well as related chronic diseases (Elliot et al, 2006).

HEALTH BENEFITS OF A VEGETARIAN DIET

Vegetarians have a lower death rate from diseases such as, ischemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease (Appleby et al., 2002).

Important effects of dietary exposures and health concerns are underestimated (Elliot et al, 2006).

Vegetarian diet can decrease systolic and diastolic blood pressures, body mass index, weight, cholesterol, and blood glucose (Slavicek et al., 2008).

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Teach others the importance of vegetables and red lean meats

Promote awareness through informational brochures and flyers

Provide access to appropriate agencies http://www.vegetarian-nutrition.info/ http://www.vegetariannutrition.net/

GAPS AND FUTURE RESEARCH

Physiological reasons of how blood pressure is lowered by vegetarian diets

Up to date qualitative articles Collaborations with cardiovascular doctors

and nutritionists Collaborations with vegetarians and

nutritionists

CONCLUSION

You don’t have to be a vegetarian to maintain a healthy lifestyle/blood pressure

Hypertension can be reduced and prevented Prevent hypertension = prevent other

chronic diseases

Thanks for your time!

REFERENCES 4pack. (2009). [Web]. Retrieved from

http://4pack.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/redmeat.jpg.

Adebawo, O, Salau, B., Ezima, E., Oyefuga, O., Ajani, E., Gbolahan, I., Famodu, A., & Osilesi, O. (2006). Fruits and vegetables moderate lipid cardiovascular risk factor in hypertensive patients. Lipids in Health and Disease, 5(14), 1-4.

American Dietetic Association.(2009). Vegetarian nutrition dietetic practice group. Retrieved from http://www.vegetariannutrition.net/.

Appleby, P., Davey, G., & Key, T. (2002). Hypertension and blood pressure among meat eaters, fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans an EPIC Oxford. Public Health Nutrition, 5(5), 645-654. Retrieved October 13, 2009, from the Cambridge Journals database.

REFERENCES

Craig, W. (2008). Vegetarianism & vegetarian nutrition. Retrieved from http://www.vegetarian-nutrition.info.

Elliot, P., Stamler, J., Zhou, B., Dyer, A., Appel, L., Dennis, B., Kesteloot, H., Ueshima, H., Okayama, A., Chan, Q., & Garside, D. (2006). Association between protein intake and blood pressure: The INTERmap study. American Medical Association, 166, 79-87. Retrieved October 1, 2009, from the Archives of Internal Medicine database.

Hodgson, J., Burke, V., Beilin, L., & Puddey, I. (2006). Partial substitution of carbohydrate intake with protein intake from lean red meat lowers blood pressure in hypertensive persons. The American Journal Clinical Nutrition, 83, 780-787.

REFERENCES

Link, L., Hussaini, N., & Jacobson, J. (2008). Change in quality of life and immune markers after a stay at a raw vegan institute: a pilot study. Complement Ther Med., 16(3), 124-130.

Slavicek, J., Kittnar, O., Fraser, G., Medova, E., Konecna, J., Zizka, R., Dohnalova, A., & Novak, V. (2008). Lifestyle decreases risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Cent Eur J Public Health, 16(4), 161-164.

Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2006). Foundations of nurisng in the community: community-oriented practice. St. Louis, MO: Mosby Elsevier.

Steve. (2007). [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.gimmecorn.com.

REFERENCES Tzoulaki, I., Brown, I., Chan, Q., Horn, L. V., Ueshima, H., Zhao,

L., Stamler, J., & Elliott, P. (2008). Relation of iron and red meat intake to blood pressure: cross sectional epidemiological study. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 337, 1-7.

Varshney. (2005). Effect of Non-Vegetarian Diet on Cardiovascular Reactivity to Mental Stress in Young Adults. Vascular Disease Prevention, 2(4), 293-298.