LAUSR

Objectives Hypertension is one of modifiable risk factors for Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), the major cause of death globally. The risk of hypertension depends on socioeconomic status, lifestyle, dietary factors, and degree of urbanization. This study was carried out to investigate whether dietary diversity is associated with hypertension in middle-aged Koreans according to their residential areas. Methods The data for this study was obtained from the Cardiovascular Disease Association Study cohort (CAVAS) and Health Examinee cohort (HEXA), subprojects of Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES). Participants were 24,518 adults (10,188 in urban and 14,380 in rural). The definition of hypertension followed the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee (JNC VII) criteria. Results The average age of the rural people was higher than that of the urban people, while the level of education and household income were significantly lower. In comparison with the urban areas, the subjects in rural regions showed the higher level of blood pressure, serum triglyceride, and LDL-cholesterol levels (P < 0.0001). The dietary variety score (DVS) was significantly lower in rural residents than that of urban populations (P < 0.0001). A significantly higher prevalence of hypertension (32.5% in rural and 16.7% in urban, P < 0.0001) and a higher odds ratio (OR) of hypertension (OR = 2.10, 95% CI: 1.97‒2.23, P < 0.0001) were observed in rural dwellers compared to urban subjects. After adjusting for potential confounder, the OR for hypertension was inversely related with DVS (OR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.22‒1.48 in the lowest quartile, P for trend < 0.0001). Conclusions These results suggested that dietary variety was lower in rural residents, which seems to be partially associated with the higher risk for hypertension of rural middle-aged Koreans. Funding Sources None.