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Dietary Potassium Attenuates the Effects of Dietary Sodium on Vascular Function in Salt‐Resistant Adults
Author(s) -
Smiljanec Katarina,
Mbakwe Alexis,
Gonzalez Macarena Ramos,
Len Shan L.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.09823
Subject(s) - potassium , aldosterone , sodium , medicine , endocrinology , excretion , blood pressure , plasma renin activity , reactive hyperemia , endothelial dysfunction , chemistry , renin–angiotensin system , vasodilation , organic chemistry
Cardiovascular disease remains a major public health problem in the U.S. and is the result of lifestyle factors, such as nutrition, that play an important role. Excess sodium consumption can increase blood pressure (BP) while consumption of potassium has been shown to have BP lowering properties. While the effect of these two nutrients on BP is fairly well understood, their impact on vascular function, particularly any interactive effects, has received less attention. Endothelial dysfunction, characterized by impaired dilation, is an important non‐traditional risk factor for atherosclerosis. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine if dietary potassium can offset the deleterious effect of high sodium on endothelial function as assessed by brachial artery flow‐mediated dilation (FMD). Thirty‐three adults with salt‐resistant BP (16M,17F; 27±1yr) completed 7 days each of the following diets: 65 mmol potassium/50 mmol sodium (MK/LS); 65 mmol potassium/300 mmol sodium (MK/HS); and 120 mmol potassium/300 mmol sodium (HK/HS) in random order. On the last day of each diet, 24‐hour ambulatory BP, 24‐hour urine collection and a blood draw was performed. FMD was assessed in response to reactive hyperemia. 24‐hr BP did not differ between diets confirming that subjects were salt‐resistant. Sodium excretion increased on both HS diets compared to LS/MK (p<0.05) and potassium excretion was increased on the HK diet compared to MK/LS and MK/HS (p<0.05) confirming diet compliance. Aldosterone and plasma renin activity were elevated on MK/LS compared to both HS diets (p<0.05). FMD was impaired on MK/HS (5.4±0.5%) compared to both MK/LS (7.0±0.6%; p<0.05) and HK/HS (6.5±0.5%; p<0.05) while there was no difference between the MK/LS and HK/HS diets (p>0.05). These data suggest that potassium provides vascular protection against the deleterious effects of high sodium on conduit artery function. Support or Funding Information This work was supported by NIH NIGMS grant # P20GM113125.