Correlation between blood pressure changes and AMS, sleeping quality and exercise upon high-altitude exposure in young Chinese men

Background: Excessive elevation of arterial blood pressure(BP) at high altitude can be detrimental to our health due to acute mountain sickness(AMS) or some AMS symptoms. This prospective and observational study aimed to elucidate blood pressure changes induced by exposure to high-altitude hypoxia and the relationships of these changes with AMS prevalence, AMS severity, sleep quality and exercise condition in healthy young men.Methods: A prospective observational study was performed in 931 male young adults exposed to high altitude at 3,700 m(Lhasa) from low altitude(LA, 500 m). Blood pressure measurement and AMS symptom questionnaires were performed at LA and on day 1, 3, 5, and 7 of exposure to high altitude. Lake Louise criteria were used to diagnose AMS. Likewise, the Athens Insomnia Scale(AIS) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale(ESS) were filled out at LA and on day 1, 3, and 7 of exposure to high altitude.Results: After acute exposure to 3,700 m, diastolic blood pressure(DBP) and mean arterial blood pressure(MABP) rose gradually and continually(P【0.05). Analysis showed a relationship with AMS for only MABP(P【0.05) but not for SBP and DBP(P】0.05). Poor sleeping quality was generally associated with higher SBP or DBP at high altitude, although inconsistent results were obtained at different time(P【0.05). SBP and Pulse BP increased noticeably after high-altitude exercise(P【0.05).Conclusions: Our data demonstrate notable blood pressure changes under exposure to different high-altitude conditions: 1) BP increased over time. 2) Higher BP generally accompanied poor sleeping quality and higher incidence of AMS. 3) SBP and Pulse BP were higher after high-altitude exercise. Therefore, we should put more effort into monitoring BP after exposure to high altitude in order to guard against excessive increases in BP.

Associations of soybean products intake with blood pressure changes and hypertension incidence: the China-PAR project

Background The relationships between dietary intake of soybean products and incident hypertension were still uncertain.This study aimed to illustrate the associations between intake of soybean products with risks of incident hypertension and longitudinal changes of blood pressure in a prospective cohort study.Methods We included 67,499 general Chinese adults from the Project of Prediction for Atherosclerosis Cardiovascular Disease Risk in China(China-PAR).Information about soybean products consumption was collected by standardized questionnaires,and study participants were categorized into the ideal(≥125 g/day)or non-ideal(<125 g/day)group.Hazard ratios(HRs)and corresponding 95%confidence intervals(95%CIs)for incident hypertension were calculated using Cox proportional hazard models.Among participants with repeated measures of blood pressure,generalized linear models were used to examine the relationships between soybean products consumption and blood pressure changes.Results During a median follow-up of 7.4 years,compared with participants who consumed<125 g of soybean products per day,multivariable adjusted HR for those in the ideal group was 0.73(0.67-0.80).This inverse association remained robust across most subgroups while significant interactions were tested between soybean products intake and age,sex,urbanization and geographic region(P values for interaction<0.05).The mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels were 1.05(0.71-1.39)mmHg and 0.44(0.22-0.66)mmHg lower among participants in the ideal group than those in the non-ideal group.Conclusions Our study showed that intake of soybean products might reduce the long-term blood pressure levels and hypertension incidence among Chinese population,which has important public health implications for primary prevention of hypertension.