School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20100 Milan, Italy.
Istituto Auxologico Italiano, IRCCS, Cardiology Unit, 20100 Milan, Italy.
Nutrients. 2021 Feb 22;13(2):697. doi: 10.3390/nu13020697.
The prevalence of essential arterial hypertension in children and adolescents has grown considerably in the last few decades, making this disease a major clinical problem in the pediatric age. The pathogenesis of arterial hypertension is multifactorial, with one of the components being represented by incorrect eating habits. In particular, excessive salt and sugar intake can contribute to the onset of hypertension in children, particularly in subjects with excess weight. Babies have an innate predisposition for sweet taste, while that for salty taste manifests after a few weeks. The recent modification of dietary styles and the current very wide availability of salt and sugar has led to an exponential increase in the consumption of these two nutrients. The dietary intake of salt and sugar in children is in fact much higher than that recommended by health agencies. The purpose of this review is to explore the mechanisms via which an excessive dietary intake of salt and sugar can contribute to the onset of arterial hypertension in children and to show the most important clinical studies that demonstrate the association between these two nutrients and arterial hypertension in pediatric age. Correct eating habits are essential for the prevention and nondrug treatment of essential hypertension in children and adolescents.
过去几十年中，儿童和青少年原发性高血压的患病率显著增加，使得该疾病成为儿科年龄段的一个主要临床问题。动脉高血压的发病机制是多因素的，其中一个组成部分是不良饮食习惯。特别是，过多的盐和糖的摄入可能会导致儿童高血压的发生，尤其是在超重的儿童中。婴儿天生就喜欢甜食，而对咸味的喜好则在几周后才表现出来。最近饮食方式的改变以及目前盐和糖的广泛供应，导致这两种营养物质的摄入量呈指数级增长。儿童的盐和糖摄入量实际上远高于卫生机构推荐的摄入量。本文旨在探讨过量的盐和糖的饮食摄入如何导致儿童动脉高血压的发生，并展示最重要的临床研究，这些研究表明这两种营养素与儿科年龄段的动脉高血压之间存在关联。正确的饮食习惯对于预防和非药物治疗儿童和青少年原发性高血压至关重要。
