Unhealthy diets are associated with a greater risk of clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) and adverse cardiovascular outcomes, according to a new analysis published in JAMA Cardiology.
The study was primarily designed to evaluate the relationship between a person’s diet and their risk of CHIP, a common blood disorder found in aging adults. The team also focused on how diets—and CHIP—may affect one’s risk of adverse cardiovascular events.
Researchers explored data from more than 44,000 adults in the U.K. All participants were between the ages of 40 and 70 when first recruited, and the mean age at the time of blood sample collection was 56.3 years old. Individuals who presented with coronary artery disease (CAD) or hematologic cancer were excluded from the group’s analysis.
Diets were considered to be unhealthy if the person’s intake of healthy elements (fruits and vegetables) was below average and their intake of unhealthy elements (red meat and processed foods) was above average. If the opposite was true—more healthy elements, fewer unhealthy elements—the diet was considered to be healthy.
Overall, CHIP was identified in 5.7% of the cohort. It was found in 7.1% of participants who had an unhealthy diet, 5.7% of participants with an intermediate diet and 5.1% of participants with a healthy diet.
Also, unhealthy diets were associated with a heightened risk of cardiovascular events—acute coronary syndromes, coronary revascularization or cardiovascular death—whether the individual had CHIP or not.
If CHIP patients do follow healthy diets, the researchers noted, it may help them avoid such cardiovascular events.
“The results of the current study support the notion that dietary pattern may mitigate the risk of excess cardiovascular disease (CVD) among individuals with CHIP,” wrote lead author Romit Bhattacharya, MD, a specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and colleagues. “With the increasingly widespread use of next-generation sequencing in research studies and clinical settings, CHIP is increasingly being identified in asymptomatic individuals. Although there are several hypotheses regarding anti-inflammatory therapies, approved dedicated therapies for the reduction of CHIP-associated CVD are currently absent.”
Read the full study here.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.