South Asian American and Cardiovascular Disease

Diet and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in South Asians

Cardiovascular diseases are one of the common and significant health issues among south Asian people. There are several research papers on this topic. The central idea of this research paper is based on the risk factors and diet quality related to cardiovascular diseases of South Asian people in the United States.

I – Main point – Diet has a significant impact on several chronic conditions specifically in cardiovascular diseases. When compared to other groups, South Asians have a greater frequency of cardiovascular disease risk. Dietary consumption is a dietary risk factor for cardiovascular disease that may be modified. Dietary trends of immigrants and subsequent generations of South Asians in Western nations change over time.

one of the main outcomes of this study is related to Intake of micro and macronutrients compare with dietary reference intake.

obese people used considerably more energy than people with a normal BMI. no significant changes in carbohydrate intake by BMI categories were observed, with the exception that obese people consumed more total, soluble, and insoluble fibre than normal-weight people, but, these relationships faded when total calorie intake was taken into account. Obese people eat more total fat, monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), and saturated fat than people of normal weight.

Except for vitamin D, phosphorus, and salt intakes, there were no significant variations in average daily micronutrient consumption by BMI group.  According to the findings, 9–17% of individuals did not reach the EAR guidelines for B vitamins, as well as vitamins A and C consumption. A higher percentage of subjects (31–96%) did not reach the EAR for zinc, magnesium, calcium, or vitamin D.

the increased risk of metabolic diseases in this group can be linked to the quality of nutrition and lifestyle choices, as well as the genetic propensity to chronic illness in this community.

SAs' dietary practises in their home countries are diverse, including vegetarian, vegan and mixed diets. Food consumption has been linked to detrimental shifts in migration to Western nations from South Asia.

the second main outcomes of this study is based on assessing diet quality utilising healthy eating index for cardiovascular health.

Except in contrast to those without any chronic conditions, there was no significant difference in individual HEI item scores or overall HEI score by chronic disease risk load (i.e., 0, 1, >1 risk factor). Individuals with 1 chronic illness had considerably greater added sugar intake.

A non-statistically significant tendency toward increased discretionary fat consumption

Conclusion

In order to conclude this paper, it can be stated that the quality of diet among South Asians is inadequate and poor in the context of meeting the need of micro and macronutrients as per recommendation. Specifically, people having low HEI score shows deficiencies in micronutrients. Moreover, it can be stated that the prevalence of chronic conditions related to poor diet quality such as obesity, hypercholesterolemia, high blood pressure is a significant reason of concern for developing cardiovascular disease.

Khan, S. A., & Jackson, R. T. (2018). Polyunsaturated fatty acids, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome in South Asian Americans in Maryland. Food Science & Nutrition, 6(6), 1575-1581. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.698

Kandula, N., Ahmed, M., Dodani S., Gupta, L., Hore, P., Kanaya, A., Gany, F. (2 019). Cardiovascular disease & cancer risk among South Asians: Impact of sociocultural influences on lifestyle and behavior. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 21(1), 15-25. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10903-017-0578-4

Gupta, Milan Published: November 03, 2020 Addressing Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease risk in South Asians: A daunting task ahead Atherosclerosis, Volume 315,76–78 doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2020.10.892