Potatoes, Hypertension RIsk and Endothelial Function Study
Condition: Endothelial Dysfunction
MeSH terms: Hypertension
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      White potatoes have recently been allowed back in the cash value voucher of the government
      food stamp program after it was stated that there were no known adverse health effects of
      potatoes. However, the association of potatoes with heart health, especially elevated blood
      pressure is not known. This study will examine the effects of potatoes on blood pressure in
      different populations of adults and children, and assess, in a feeding trial, the effects of
      an additional serving of potatoes per day on the possible mechanisms that link potatoes to
      high blood pressure. The investigators will also analyze the intake of potatoes in
      participants of the government food stamp program.
    

Detailed description: 
      Potatoes are one of the most consumed vegetables in the US and the world. In recent years,
      several changes have been made to government sponsored food programs with respect to
      potatoes, such as lifting the restriction on the number of servings of starchy vegetables
      (including potatoes) established by the Healthy Hunger-Free Act, and re-allowing white
      potatoes in the cash-value voucher for fruits and vegetables of the Special Supplemental
      Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), after the Institute of Medicine
      asserted that there was insufficient evidence that white potatoes had adverse health effects.
      However, the investigators recently reported an increased incidence of hypertension with
      increasing potato consumption in three large prospective US cohort studies after adjusting
      for sodium intake and other potential confounders. The investigators also analyzed the
      association of short-term potato intake from a 24-hr dietary recall with
      endothelial-dependent vasodilation measured by brachial artery ultrasonography in the
      Modifiable Effectors of Renin System Activation Treatment Evaluation (MODERATE) trial.
      Participants who consumed one or more than one serving of boiled, baked or mashed potatoes
      during the previous day had a 1.7% lower endothelial-dependent vasodilation when compared
      with participants with no potato intake (p-value= 0.01) after adjusting for other factors.
      This is a relevant difference in endothelial function - by comparison, every 10 year increase
      in age was associated with a 1.2% lower endothelial function. Therefore, the investigators
      plan to analyze the effect of one serving of boiled, baked or mashed potato per day on
      endothelial function in a crossover feeding trial of healthy adult men and women.
    

Intervention name(s): Potato; Non-starchy vegetable
Intervention type(s): Other; Other
Intervention description(s): Participants will be given an extra serving of potato a day; Participants will be given an extra serving of a non-starchy vegetable
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Crossover Assignment
Intervention model description: Crossover feeding trial
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: nutrition; Potatoes; endothelial function; feeding trial