Nutrient Profiles of Korean-Americans, Non-Hispanic Whites and Blacks With and Without Hypertension in the United States

Purpose

We compared the nutrient profiles of hypertensive Korean-Americans, non-Hispanic Whites and Blacks with those of normotensive Korean-Americans, Whites, and Blacks.

Methods

This study was a cross-sectional comparative design of nutrient profiles among three ethnic groups. Korean-Americans were interviewed at Korean-American health clinics and churches in Chicago and data were collected by the 24-hour dietary recall method. Age- and sex-matched data of non-Hispanic Whites and Blacks were selected from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for comparison. Descriptive statistics, one way ANOVA with post hoc test, and the propensity score matching method within each hypertensive and normotensive group were used for data analysis. Subjects included 102 subjects with hypertension (Korean-Americans, n = 37; Whites, n = 37; Blacks, n = 28), and 149 subjects without hypertension (Korean-Americans, n = 55; Whites, n = 55; Blacks, n = 39) for final statistical analyses.

Results

Significant differences in nutrient profiles among the three groups were as follows. In both hypertensive and normotensive groups, Korean-Americans consumed less energy from fat and saturated fatty acids and more energy from carbohydrates than did Whites and Blacks. All three ethnic groups exceeded the dietary reference intakes of sodium, but did not meet those of calcium and potassium.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that protein may be needed to replace excessive carbohydrate intake in Korean-Americans and to replace fat intake in Whites and Blacks. Health professionals need to emphasize the importance of increasing calcium and potassium intake and decreasing sodium intake in their nutrition education for these ethnic groups to help prevent and control hypertension.

Key Words:  diet , ethnic groups , hypertension

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