Hypertension is closely associated with the Western diet and found almost entirely in developed countries. Residents in remote areas of China, New Guinea, Panama, Brazil, and Africa show virtually no evidence of hypertension, even with advanced age. But when individuals within these groups moved to more industrialized area, the incidence of hypertension among them rose. This concluded that changes in lifestyles, including dietary changes and increased body mass and fat, significant contributed to the higher levels of pressure. And obesity, regardless of the presence of other factors, increases the risk of hypertension.
Although a combination of genetic and environmental factors such as behavior pattern and stress contribute to hypertension, the main cause appears to be a diet high in animal fat and salt, especially if high in relation to potassium and magnesium. Research concurs, that high in sodium chloride and deficient in potassium has been associated with hypertension. Lack of potassium and nutritional deficiencies play significant role in the development of hypertension, magnesium levels have been found to be consistently low in patients with high blood pressure.
Environmental factors such as lead contamination from drinking water, as well as residues of heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury, have been shown to promote hypertension. Even a low level of lead exposure and accumulation in tissues in adults is now linked to both hypertension and impaired kidney function. There were a study involving over 1000 men, the exposure to lead was at levels previously considered safe. Those with the highest bone levels of lead were 50% more, likely to have hypertension than those with the lowest. Researchers found that high levels of childhood exposure to lead are linked to adult obesity. Adult who had absorbed high leads levels as children gained the most weight between the ages of seven and 20. Both excess weight and high lead concentrations are associated with high blood pressure in adults. People with hypertension have been shown to have blood cadmium levels three or four times higher than those with normal blood pressure. It is important to rule out lead, cadmium and mercury toxicity when treating hypertension.
Dietary and Environmental Factors
