DASH Dietary Pattern, Mediation by Mineral Intakes, and the Risk of Coronary Artery Disease and Stroke Mortality

BACKGROUND: The association of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) dietary pattern with stroke and coronary artery disease (CAD) mortality has not been evaluated in Asian populations, and the role of mineral intakes as potential mediators is not clear. METHODS AND RESULTS: We used data from 57 078 participants of the Singapore Chinese Health Study aged 45 to 74 years at baseline (1993–1998). Information on usual diet was collected by a validated 165‐item food frequency questionnaire at recruitment, and mortality information was obtained via registry linkage up to December 31, 2014. We constructed DASH scores based on quintiles of intake of 7 predefined food items and sodium. Cox proportional hazard models were used to calculate hazard ratios and corresponding 95% CIs. Greater adherence to the DASH dietary pattern was significantly associated with a lower risk of CAD (hazard ratio between extreme quintiles, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.65–0.90; P trend<0.001) and stroke (hazard ratio, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.50–0.78; P trend<0.001) mortality. We found an inverse association between potassium intake and CAD mortality and a direct association between sodium intake and stroke mortality. No other significant associations were observed for potassium, sodium, magnesium, and calcium intakes in relation to CAD or stroke mortality. Adjustment for mineral intakes did not materially change the association of the DASH score with CAD or stroke mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Adherence to the DASH dietary pattern was associated with substantially lower risk of CAD and stroke mortality in an Asian population, and this inverse association did not appear to be substantially mediated by intakes of sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.