Baseline Characteristics of Black and Hispanic Adults with Hypertension in Healthy Food Priority Areas: The THRIVE Food-is-Medicine Pilot Trial
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Background
Hypertension disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic adults, with disparities amplified by structural barriers, including limited access to healthy food. Understanding cardiovascular risk profiles is essential for designing effective interventions. We assessed baseline characteristics of participants in the THRIVE Food-is-Medicine pilot trial.
Methods
This baseline analysis included 80 Black and Hispanic adults from Maryland participating in a randomized controlled trial of a culturally tailored Food-is-Medicine intervention. Participants had hypertension or uncontrolled blood pressure (≥120/80 mmHg), and resided in census tracts with low Healthy Food Availability Index scores. We collected sociodemographic characteristics, clinical measures, laboratory values, and dietary patterns. Descriptive statistics were calculated using means (±standard deviation) for continuous variables and frequencies (percentages) for categorical variables.
Results
Participants had high educational attainment (45% ≥ master’s degree), yet economic vulnerabilities persisted: 70% <$50,000 annually, 28% unemployed, and 31% lacked health insurance. Food insecurity affected 36%. Mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure were 138.1±16.1 and 82.6±10.3 mmHg, respectively. While 45% had Stage 2 hypertension, only 58% owned blood pressure monitors. Regarding dietary quality, the mean DASH adherence score was 3.83±1.9 out of 9 points, with 58% below 4.5. Potassium intake was low; only 29% met DASH potassium targets.
Conclusion
Based on these data, THRIVE participants faced intersecting vulnerabilities, including economic insecurity, limited healthcare access, food insecurity, and poor dietary quality. This profile shows the multilayered drivers of hypertension disparities and substantial cardiovascular risk burden. Findings will guide intervention refinement of larger-scale nutrition and food-is-medicine trials addressing hypertension disparities in under-resourced communities.
