Insulin Resistance, Serum Calcium and Hypertension: A Cross-Sectional Study of a Multiracial Population, and a Similarity Assessment of Results from a Single-Race Population’s Study

BACKGROUND: Recent research suggests the need to assess more ethnic disparities in hypertension (HTN). On the other hand, studies reveal impressive mortality rates due to cardiovascular diseases for some race and ethnic groups compared to others. METHODS: We referred to a recent study on serum calcium (SC) and insulin resistance associated with HTN incidence to compare different race groups in the latter found relationship. We compare the current study outcomes with those from the Wu et al study. RESULTS: From 425 participants of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data, we found a significant association between race and hypertension; Cramer’s V (0.006) = 0.21 when adjusted with non-hypertensives and hypertensives. Mc Auley index (McA) was negatively related to hypertension, r (355) = −0.24, p < 0.0001. SC associated with HTN in all race groups significance persisted only in non-Hispanic Whites after multivariate adjustments R(2) of 74.1 (p = 0.03). McA was a mediator on SC-HTN in non-Hispanic Whites (NHW) (Coef(IE) = 13.25, [CI] = 1.42–32.13), and a moderator in other Hispanics interaction (0.04) = 0.27 and NHW interaction (0.001) = 0.028. CONCLUSION: SC was associated with hypertension, similarly to the baseline study. SC and HTN association persisted in NHW compared to other race groups. Homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR) was not a mediator on SC-HTN, but with McA, this in NHW only. McA played a moderator role in OH and NHW. We suggest that race is a factor implicated in our findings, which may be investigated further in future research.