Papers by Francesco P Cappuccio

Nutrients
Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular events and death. A reduction in salt in... more Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular events and death. A reduction in salt intake is among the most cost-effective strategies to reduce blood pressure and the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Increasing potassium lowers blood pressure and is associated with lower cardiovascular risk. Adequate iodine intake is important to prevent iodine deficiency disorders. Salt iodization is a key strategy to prevent such deficiency. In Lithuania, no surveys have been performed to directly assess sodium, potassium and iodine consumption. The aim of the present study was to measure sodium, potassium and iodine intake in a randomly selected adult Lithuanian adult population using 24 h urine collections, and to assess knowledge, attitudes and behavior towards salt consumption. Salt and potassium intakes were estimated in 888 randomly selected participants by 24 h urine sodium and potassium excretion and 679 individuals provided suitable 24 h urine samples for the analysis of iodin...
European Heart Journal Open
Vascular Risk Factors and Clinical Importance of Renal Artery Stenosis in Patients with Peripheral Vascular Disease
Clinical science. Supplement (1979), Jul 1, 1993

Nutrients
The association between salt-related knowledge, attitude, behaviour (KAB) and actual salt consump... more The association between salt-related knowledge, attitude, behaviour (KAB) and actual salt consumption in Greek adults is uncertain. This study investigates the correlation between salt intake, gauged by 24-h urinary sodium excretion, with salt-related KAB. It further explores how socio-demographic factors influence these behaviors. Salt consumption was evaluated using a 24-h urinary sodium test, and compared to self-reported KAB data. Knowledge and behavior scores related to salt were computed. An overall cohort-adjusted model examined the relationship between daily salt consumption, knowledge and behavior scores, and certain covariates. Through the stratification by the cohort random effect, two models were established (Cohort I Adults; Cohort II Students) examining the same relationships of the overall cohort model. 463 Greek adults participated. The average salt intake was 9.54 g/day, nearly double the WHO recommendation. Significant differences in knowledge scores were noted bas...

Journal of Clinical Hypertension, May 14, 2019
The International Consortium for Quality Research on Dietary Sodium/Salt (TRUE) is a coalition of... more The International Consortium for Quality Research on Dietary Sodium/Salt (TRUE) is a coalition of intentional and national health and scientific organizations formed because of concerns low-quality research methods were creating controversy regarding dietary salt reduction. One of the main sources of controversy is believed related to errors in estimating sodium intake with urine studies. The recommendations and positions in this manuscript were generated following a series of systematic reviews and analyses by experts in hypertension, nutrition, statistics, and dietary sodium. To assess the population's current 24-hour dietary sodium ingestion, single complete 24-hour urine samples, collected over a series of days from a representative | 701 CAMPBELL Et AL. How to cite this article: Campbell NRC, He FJ, Tan M, et al. The International Consortium for Quality Research on Dietary Sodium/Salt (TRUE) position statement on the use of 24-hour, spot, and short duration (<24 hours) timed urine collections to assess dietary sodium intake.

Public Health Nutrition
Objective: To inform strategies aimed at improving blood pressure (BP) control and reducing salt ... more Objective: To inform strategies aimed at improving blood pressure (BP) control and reducing salt intake, we assessed educational inequalities in high blood pressure (HBP) awareness, treatment and control; physician’s advice on salt reduction; and salt knowledge, perceptions and consumption behaviours in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Design: Data were collected in cross-sectional, population-based nationally representative surveys, using a multi-stage clustered sampling design. Five HBP awareness, treatment and control categories were created from measured BP and hypertension medication use. Education and other variables were self-reported. Weighted multinomial mixed-effects regression models, adjusted for confounders, were used to assess differences across education categories. Settings: Nine Eastern European and Central Asian countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan). Participants: Nationally representat...
Journal of Human Hypertension

Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2020
BackgroundHigh-sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP) has been proposed as a marker of incident c... more BackgroundHigh-sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP) has been proposed as a marker of incident cardiovascular disease and vascular mortality, and may also be a marker of non-vascular mortality. However, most evidence comes from either North American or European cohorts. The present proposal aims to investigate the association of hsCRP with the risk of all-cause mortality in a multiethnic Brazilian population.MethodsBaseline data (2008–2010) of a cohort of 14 238 subjects participating in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health were used. hsCRP was assayed with immunochemistry. The association of baseline covariates with all-cause mortality was calculated by Cox regression for univariate model and adjusted for different confounders after a mean follow-up of 8.0±1.1 years. The final model was adjusted for age, sex, self-rated race/ethnicity, schooling, health behaviours and prevalent chronic disease.ResultsThe risk of death increased steadily by quartiles of hsCRP, from 1.45...

BMJ Open, 2020
ObjectivesTo estimate population sodium and potassium intakes and explore knowledge, attitudes an... more ObjectivesTo estimate population sodium and potassium intakes and explore knowledge, attitudes and behaviour (KAB) towards the use of salt in adults in the Sultanate of Oman.DesignNational cross-sectional population-based survey.SettingProportional random samples, representative of Omani adults (18 years or older), were obtained from all governorates of the Sultanate of Oman.ParticipantsFive hundred and sixty-nine (193 men, 376 women; 18 years or older) were included in the analysis (response rate 57%). Mean age was 39.4 years (SD 13.1). Participants attended a screening including demographic, anthropometric and physical measurements.Primary and secondary outcome measuresWe assessed dietary sodium, potassium and creatinine by 24-hour urinary sodium (UNa), potassium (UK) and creatinine (UCr) excretions. We collected KAB by a questionnaire on an electronic tablet.ResultsMean UNa was 144.3 (78.8) mmol/day, equivalent to 9.0 g of salt/day and potassium excretion 52.6 (32.6) mmol/day, eq...

International Journal of Hypertension, 2018
Introduction. Hypertension, particularly pulse pressure [PP] is a major risk factor for end-stage... more Introduction. Hypertension, particularly pulse pressure [PP] is a major risk factor for end-stage renal disease. However, the effect of individual components of hypertension namely PP, systolic [SBP] and diastolic blood pressure [DBP] on kidney function, in the general African population is unknown. Methods. Data were collected on 944 participants [aged 40-75 y], living in villages in the area around the city of Kumasi, Ghana, on demographics, medications, height, weight, BP and 24-hour creatinine clearance (CrCl). Results. The demographic and clinical characteristics were: age 55(11) [mean (SD)] years, females 62%, rural village-dwellers 52%, diabetes 1·5%, BMI 21(4) kg/m2, 24-hourCrCl as a measure of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) 84(23) ml/min/1.73 m2. 29% had BP >140/90 mmHg; SBP and DBP were 125/74(26/14) mmHg, PP was 51(17) mmHg. PP increased with age by 0.55(95% CI: 0.46,0.64) mmHg/year. PP was higher (53(17) v 49(15) mmHg; p < 0.001) in the semiurban participants. GF...

International Journal of Hypertension, 2018
Hypertension is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in Sub-... more Hypertension is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in Sub-Saharan Africa. In western populations, high haemoglobin levels are associated with raised BP unlike in Sub-Saharan Africa where there is a paucity of data. Our study examines the association between haematological indices with BP variables. Weight, height, BP, and whole blood indices of viscosity (Hb, haematocrit, RBC count, and MCV) were measured in 921 adults (340 men, 581 women; aged 40–75) in 12 communities in Ghana. Mean values for Hb (12.3 g/dl ± 1.7 SD), haematocrit (36.7%±5.2), RBC (4.10 million/μL ± 0.64), and MCV were lower than reference values used in Sub-Saharan Africa. Mean BMI was 21.1±4.1 indicating a lean population. Systolic BP increased by 1.0 mmHg (95% CI 0.5–1.5), p<0.001, for women and 0.5 (0.1–1.0), p=0.027, for men per unit increase in haematocrit. Similar relationships were found for Hb and RBC but not for MCV or platelets. The relationships were weaker when ...

International Journal of Cardiology, 2018
Background: China has one of the highest salt intake levels in the world, and Chinese people form... more Background: China has one of the highest salt intake levels in the world, and Chinese people form one of the largest foreign-born communities now living in Europe. The present study was performed to assess 24-hour urinary sodium and potassium excretion in Chinese migrants in Italy and to explore possible associations with hypertension, hypertension awareness, and length of residence in Italy. Methods: A cross-sectional evaluation was conducted on 319 first-generation Chinese migrants (154 women and 165 men) aged 18-70 years. Subjects were asked to do a 24-hour urine collection and the relationships of urinary sodium and potassium and arterial blood pressure, hypertension (BP ≥ 140/90 mmHg or anti-hypertensive drug use), hypertension awareness, and years of residence in Italy were investigated with linear or logistic regression analysis. Results: Sodium excretion was 145.2 mmol/day (95%CI 138.0-152.3) in men, and 134.7 (95%CI 127.6-141.8) in women corresponding to a dietary salt intake of 9.4 g/day (95%CI 9.0-9.9) and 8.8 (95%CI 8.3-9.2) respectively. Potassium excretion was 35.1 mmol/day (95%CI 33.6-36.5), with no significant difference by gender. At multivariable adjusted linear regression analysis body mass index, low education level, and hypertension were positive predictors of sodium urinary excretion; gender (women), and body mass index were positive predictors of potassium excretion. Sodium and potassium excretion were unaffected by hypertension awareness or years of residence in Italy. Conclusions: Sodium excretion in Chinese workers is higher than recommended and in line with high salt intake in Italy. Potassium consumption remains low.

Experimental Diabetes Research, 2012
South Asians have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease (CV... more South Asians have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) than white Caucasians, for a given BMI. Premature biological ageing, assessed by reduction in telomere length (TL), may be mediated by factors resulting from altered metabolic profiles associated with obesity. We hypothesise that ethnicity and metabolic status represent detrimental factors contributing to premature biological ageing. Therefore we assessed TL in two South Asian, age and BMI-matched cohorts [T2DM (n=142) versus non-T2DM (n=76)] to determine the effects of BMI, gender, lipid and CVD profile on biological ageing. Genomic DNA was obtained from the UKADS cohort; biochemical and anthropometric data was collected and TL was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. Our findings indicated a gender-specific effect with reduced TL in T2DM men compared with non-T2DM men (P=0.006). Additionally, in T2DM men, TL was inversely correlated with triglycerides and total cholesterol (r=−0....
New Themes in Hypertension: Introduction
Journal of Human Hypertension, 1997

Public Health Nutrition
Objective: The WHO recommends that adults consume less than 5 g of salt per day to reduce the ris... more Objective: The WHO recommends that adults consume less than 5 g of salt per day to reduce the risk of CVD. This study aims to examine the average population daily salt intake in the fifty-three Member States of the WHO European Region. Design: A systematic review was conducted to examine the most up-to-date salt intake data for adults published between 2000 and 2022. Data were obtained from peer-reviewed and grey literature, WHO surveys and studies, as well as from national and global experts. Setting: The fifty-three Member States of the WHO European Region. Participants: People aged 12 years or more. Results: We identified fifty studies published between 2010 and 2021. Most countries in the WHO European Region (n 52, 98 %) reported salt intake above WHO recommended maximum levels. In almost all countries (n 52, 98 %), men consume more salt than women, ranging between 5·39 and 18·51 g for men and 4·27 and 16·14 g for women. Generally, Western and Northern European countries have th...

European Cardiology Review, 2020
The accurate measurement, prediction and treatment of high blood pressure (BP) are essential to t... more The accurate measurement, prediction and treatment of high blood pressure (BP) are essential to the management of hypertension and the prevention of its associated cardiovascular (CV) risks. However, even if BP is optimally controlled during the day, nocturnal high blood pressure may still increase the risk of CV events. The pattern of circadian rhythm of BP can be evaluated by ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM). Night-time ABPM is more closely associated with fatal and nonfatal CV events than daytime ambulatory BP. However, the use of ABPM is limited by low availability and the fact that it can cause sleep disturbance, therefore may not provide realistic nocturnal measurements. Home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM) offers an inexpensive alternative to ABPM, is preferred by patients and provides a more realistic assessment of BP during an individual’s daily life. However, until recently, HBPM did not offer the possibility to measure nocturnal (sleep time) BP. The development and valida...
Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases, 2018
The version presented here may differ from the published version or, version of record, if you wi... more The version presented here may differ from the published version or, version of record, if you wish to cite this item you are advised to consult the publisher's version. Please see the 'permanent WRAP URL' above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription.

PloS one, 2017
We examined whether specific input data and assumptions explain outcome differences in otherwise ... more We examined whether specific input data and assumptions explain outcome differences in otherwise comparable health impact assessment models. Seven population health models estimating the impact of salt reduction on morbidity and mortality in western populations were compared on four sets of key features, their underlying assumptions and input data. Next, assumptions and input data were varied one by one in a default approach (the DYNAMO-HIA model) to examine how it influences the estimated health impact. Major differences in outcome were related to the size and shape of the dose-response relation between salt and blood pressure and blood pressure and disease. Modifying the effect sizes in the salt to health association resulted in the largest change in health impact estimates (33% lower), whereas other changes had less influence. Differences in health impact assessment model structure and input data may affect the health impact estimate. Therefore, clearly defined assumptions and tr...
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Papers by Francesco P Cappuccio