High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a common health problem that affects millions of people worldwide. It can reduce both the quality and length of life. Finding ways to lower risks for people with hypertension is important. Recently, researchers studied whether consuming live microbes could help those with high blood pressure.
Eating foods or taking supplements that contain live microorganisms, such as probiotics, has become a popular way to improve gut and heart health. Fermented foods like kefir, kimchi, and some yogurts are good sources of these live microbes. In a new study published in Scientific Reports, researchers examined how eating live microbes and spending time sitting might impact people with hypertension.
Many people have jobs that require sitting at a desk, driving, or relaxing on the couch for long hours. However, sitting too much can harm heart health. Long periods of sitting can damage the cells that line blood vessels. When these cells do not work well, blood vessels cannot relax properly. This raises blood pressure and increases the risk of other health problems.
While large studies on humans are still needed to confirm the effects of less sitting and more live microbes on high blood pressure, this new study aims to fill some of that gap. Let’s look at what the researchers found.
How the Study Was Done
The researchers used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). This database collects health and nutrition information from people living in the United States. The study included over 15,000 adults with high blood pressure.
The study focused on how much live microbes people ate and how much time they spent sitting. The researchers explained that processed foods usually have few or no live microbes. Fresh fruits and vegetables with skins contain some microbes. Fermented foods like yogurt and kimchi have the most.
Participants reported what they ate over a 24-hour period. Their foods were then grouped into three levels: low (mostly processed foods), moderate (some fresh produce), and high (fermented or unprocessed foods). Each person was placed into one of these groups based on their diet.
To measure sitting time, participants answered questions about how many hours they spent sitting daily. This included time at work, commuting, watching TV, reading, or using a computer. The researchers divided people into three groups: sitting less than five hours, five to eight hours, or more than eight hours a day.
The researchers also tracked survival rates using health data up to the end of 2019. They considered other factors such as diet, probiotic use, and salt intake.
Key Findings
The study showed that people who ate the fewest live microbe-rich foods had a higher risk of death from any cause and from heart disease. Those who ate the most live microbes had a lower risk.
People who sat less than five hours a day had the lowest risk of death. However, those sitting five to eight hours and those sitting more than eight hours had similar, higher risks.
For every extra hour spent sitting, the risk of dying from any cause increased by 6%. The risk of death from heart problems rose by 6.5% per extra hour sitting. In contrast, eating more live-microbe foods reduced these risks. People with moderate or high intake of these foods had notably lower death rates than those with low intake.
Interestingly, the study found a “U-shaped” link between sitting time and death risk. This means that both very low and very high amounts of sitting may increase risk, while moderate sitting—around four hours a day—appears safer.
The researchers also found that for people who sat more than about 4.1 hours a day, eating moderate or high amounts of live microbes was especially helpful in lowering heart-related death risk.
While the link between live microbes and overall death risk was not strong in every group, the general trend suggested better health with more microbe-rich foods. This highlights the benefits of combining less sitting with a healthier diet for those with high blood pressure.
Limitations of the Study
Some limitations should be noted. First, the study estimated microbe intake based on food types but did not measure exact microbe amounts. This could cause some errors. Second, the data relied on self-reports, which may be inaccurate because people might forget or misstate their habits. Finally, the study only looked at people in the U.S., who may differ from others globally in lifestyle, health care, and genetics. So, the results may not apply everywhere.
What This Means for You
If you have high blood pressure, this study suggests two useful steps. First, try to reduce your sitting time to less than about four hours daily. This may lower your risk of death, especially from heart issues. Second, add more live microbe-rich foods to your diet. Examples include yogurt, fermented vegetables, and fresh fruits or vegetables with skins.
Adding live microbes to your meals can be simple. You could try a kefir smoothie, add sauerkraut to sandwiches, or make frozen yogurt bites. Together, eating these foods and sitting less may help you manage hypertension better.
Conclusion
This study from Scientific Reports shows that small lifestyle changes can improve health for people with high blood pressure. Sitting less and eating more live microbe-rich foods may protect your heart and help you live longer. Simple habits, like standing up more often or adding fermented vegetables to your meals, could make a real difference.
Although more research is needed to fully understand these effects and how they apply worldwide, this study offers hope. It reminds us that easy, daily choices may lead to better health outcomes for those living with hypertension.
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