Assessing the effectiveness of a DASH diet in hypertensive patients attending the Ngaoundere Regional Hospital - Cameroon: a case-control study.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to evaluate the impact of a locally adapted DASH diet on hypertensive patients' health markers at Ngaoundere Regional Hospital.
Results Summary
The DASH diet significantly improved hypertension markers (BMI, SBP, DBP, LDL-c, total-cholesterol) in the test group, while the control group had higher risks of elevated blood pressure. The diet was deemed effective for hypertension management.
Population
160 hypertensive patients at Ngaoundere Regional Hospital, Cameroon (88 in test group, 72 in control group).
Effective Dosage
Maximum of 2000 kcal/day.
Duration
8 weeks.
Interactions
None mentioned.
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | all the markers of hypertension | hypertensive patients at the Ngaoundere Regional Hospital | - | improves | #1 |
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | BMI | test group | - | significant decreases | #2 |
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | SBP | test group | - | significant decreases | #3 |
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | DBP | test group | - | significant decreases | #4 |
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | LDL-c | test group | - | significant decreases | #5 |
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs | decrease | total-cholesterol | test group | - | significant decreases | #6 |
normal diet | increase | systolic and diastolic pressures | control group | fourteen and seven times more risk | had fourteen and seven times more risk of having increased | #7 |
normal diet | increase | hypertension complications | control group | - | exposed to | #8 |
Hypertension remains a public health issue in Cameroon, though lifestyle and dietetic measures are the main approaches for the prevention and management of hypertension. The present study aimed at evaluating the impact of a Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs on the status of hypertensive patients at the Ngaoundere Regional Hospital. A case-control study was carried out with 160 hypertensive patients divided into two groups, a test and a control group. A food questionnaire was used to evaluate the food habits of patients and design the sheet of the DASH diet to provide a maximum of 2000 kcal/d. The DASH diet was administered to the test group (eighty-eight patients), while the control group (seventy-two patients) consumed their normal diet. Both groups were followed up for 8 weeks. The systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP, DBP), body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, HDL-c, LDL-c and total-cholesterol levels of patients of the two groups were measured before and after the intervention. The results indicate that the DASH diet improves all the markers of hypertension in the test group with significant decreases in BMI, SBP, DBP, LDL-c and total-cholesterol. Patients of the control group had fourteen and seven times more risk of having increased systolic and diastolic pressures, respectively, and are thus exposed to hypertension complications. The DASH diet established in this study is therefore effective for the management of hypertension.