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Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2025. This meeting, which will take place in New Orleans from March 6-9 2025, offers the most recent science regarding population-based wellness, health, and lifestyle implications. The study’s authors claim that it’s the first time anyone has explored the association between pregnancy metal levels and midlife blood-pressure and hypertension risks in women. And the full manuscript was published simultaneously today by the peer reviewed journal of the American Heart Association Hypertension. The anti-oxidation, anti-inflammatory, and magnesium, copper, and selenium properties of these metals may protect the body against cardiovascular diseases. In previous research, higher manganese levels were linked to a reduced risk of preeclampsia. It is unknown whether high levels of essential elements during pregnancy can influence a person’s risk for developing hypertension later in life. According to the Association’s scientific statement 2023, chronic exposure of non-essential elements such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium is linked to an increased cardiovascular disease risk. “Contaminant Metals as Cardiovascular Risk Factors.”
“People are constantly exposed to heavy metals and trace elements, and much research has shown that exposure to those metals and elements may have an impact on cardiovascular health, especially hypertension,” Lead study author Mingyu Zhang Ph.D. M.H.S. an epidemiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and Harvard Medical School in Boston. Researchers analyzed Project Viva data, a long-term, ongoing study of eastern Massachusetts women, their children, and researchers. Between 1999 and 2002, nearly 500 women participated in this study. The researchers measured the concentrations of essential and non-essential minerals, including copper, magnesium, manganese and selenium. They also looked at folate, vitamin B12, and other metals. Researchers conducted “midlife” a study between 2017 and 2020 with participants who had a median of 51,2 years. Researchers assessed blood pressure in order to determine if there were any associations between metals and blood pressure or high blood pressure. If blood pressure measurements were higher than 130/80mmHg, or participants had confirmed that they were taking antihypertensive medications, then the participant was classified as high blood pressure. The potential effects of the eleven metals, two micronutrients and their combined effect on blood pressure was also analyzed.
Researchers found that after adjusting for sociodemographic variables, when copper and manganese levels doubled during pregnancy, midlife blood pressure risk was reduced by 25% and 20%, respectively.
“Circulating levels of these metals and minerals in blood were measured, however, the sources of exposure, such as food or dietary supplements, were not quantified so these findings should not be interpreted as recommendations,” Zhang said. He added “Optimizing these essential metals, minerals and vitamins, particularly copper, manganese and vitamin B12, during pregnancy may offer protective benefits against hypertension in midlife, an especially critical time period for women’s future cardiovascular risk in later life.”
“More research including clinical trials is needed to determine the optimal dietary intake of these minerals and micronutrients,” . Researchers hope to identify high-risk women for high blood pressure in later life, and then intervene with supplements or enhanced nutrition during pregnancy.
Details, background, and design of the study:
- This analysis involved 493 women enrolled Project Viva. Project Viva is a prospective longitudinal study that examines the effect of lifestyle and environmental factors on women’s and children’s health during pregnancy. Project Viva enrolled pregnant women between 1999-2002. At enrollment, the women were a median of 32 years old. The participants were tracked for 18.1 years through 2021. Participants self-identified
- as 72% white women, 11% black women, and 17% as Hispanic, Latina, Asian, Pacific Islander or American Indian, Alaskan Native or Native American. Blood samples collected during study enrollment were stored in freezers to be analyzed later. Researchers analyzed blood samples for the study. During pregnancy, blood plasma was also tested for vitamin B12 and folate.
- The blood pressure of study participants was measured during “midlife” study visits between 2017 and 2020. In this study, research assistants trained in blood pressure measurement measured the participants up to five time, each at a one-minute interval. The average of the blood pressure readings was then calculated.
- Adjustments were made for the following: maternal age, body mass index at enrollment in the study, race, ethnicity, income of households, number of pregnancy carried to full term, use of antihypertensive medications, DASH score during early pregnancy, and intake of multivitamins. This study has limitations, including that it is an observational one. Other confounding variables that weren’t measured may have affected results. The researchers included only a subset from the original Project Viva Participants. There were also demographic differences among the participants who were included or excluded. The researchers also did not measure metal levels in the body between birth and midlife. Participants were mainly white women from Eastern Massachusetts. This may have limited the generalizability.
