Greater adherence to the dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) dietary pattern is associated with lower blood pressure in healthy Iranian primary school children.

Purpose: The dietary determinants of children blood pressure (BP) are poorly understood. We examined the association between adherence to the dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) dietary pattern and BP in healthy Iranian primary school children.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among a representative sample (n = 407) of healthy Shirazi students aged 6-12 years. Subjects' systolic and diastolic BP were measured by a validated oscillometric BP monitor. Usual dietary intakes over the past 12 months were assessed using a valid and reproducible 168-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire via face-to-face interviews. A DASH score was calculated for each subject based on his/her energy-adjusted intakes of 8 major dietary components emphasized or minimized in the DASH dietary pattern. The higher the DASH score of a subject, the more his/her adherence to the DASH dietary pattern.

Results: After controlling for several potential confounders in the analysis of covariance models, multivariable-adjusted means of systolic and mean BP of subjects in the highest tertile of DASH score were significantly lower than those in the lowest tertile (for systolic BP: mean difference -6.2 mmHg, P = 0.010; and for mean BP: mean difference -5.4 mmHg, P = 0.013). Furthermore, a similar but statistically insignificant difference was found in terms of multivariable-adjusted means of diastolic BP (mean difference -3.9 mmHg, P = 0.146).

Conclusions: The findings suggest that greater adherence to the DASH dietary pattern is associated with lower BP in healthy Iranian primary school children. However, future prospective studies of adequate methodological quality are warranted to confirm these findings.