High Water Intake/Lowered Coronary Heart Disease

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April 25, 2002 (press release)

 

Loma Linda University reveals first study on correlation between high water

intake and lowered coronary heart disease

 

Jacqueline Chan, DrPH and Synnove Knutsen, MD, PhD

 

In 1999, nearly 530,000 people died from coronary heart disease. More than

half of them had no previous symptoms of heart disease. Drinking high levels

of water can significantly reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, say

researchers at Loma Linda University.

 

In a press conference held Thursday, April 25, the results of a study to be

published in the American Journal of Epidemiology (Vol. 155, No.9) reveal

that drinking high amounts of plain water is as important as exercise, diet,

or not smoking in preventing coronary heart disease.

 

" Basically, not drinking enough water can be as harmful to your heart as

smoking, " warns Jacqueline Chan, DrPH, principle investigator and lead

author of the article.

 

Dr. Chan and Synnove Knutsen, MD, PhD, second author, chair of epidemiology

department, found that California Seventh-day Adventists who drink five or

more glasses of plain water a day have a much lower risk of fatal coronary

heart disease compared to those who drink less than two glasses per day.

 

The study, " Water, Other Fluids, and Fatal Coronary Heart Disease, "

indicates that whole blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, hematocrit, and

fibrinogen which are considered independent risk factors for coronary heart

disease, can be elevated by dehydration.

 

The water study is part of the original Adventist Health Study, which began

in 1973. Both researchers are also coinvestigators for the new Adventist

Health Study.

 

The results from this study show that by drinking more plain water, healthy

people-without any history of heart disease, stroke, or diabetes-reduced

their risk of dying from a heart attack by half or more. This is as much or

more than if they had adopted any other well-known preventive measure,

including stopping smoking and lowering cholesterol levels, increasing

exercise or maintaining ideal weight.

While not as glamorous, the degree of benefit from drinking plain water

surpasses that of drinking a moderate amount of alcohol intake and aspirin

with none of the adverse side effects (social or physiological). Because

drinking more plain water is a simple lifestyle change that anybody can do,

this simple practice has the potential of saving tens of thousands of lives

each year with minimal cost.

Neither total fluid intake, nor intake of other fluids combined showed this

reduced risk. Instead, for women, high intake (5 or more glasses a day) of

other fluids showed a greatly increased risk of coronary heart disease.

 

" People need to be made aware that there is a difference, at least for heart

health, whether they get their fluids from plain water or from sodas, " says

Dr. Chan.

 

According to Dr. Chan, this is the first study to record the association

between high water intake and reduced risk of coronary heart disease.

 

" This study needs to be replicated, and if similar results are found, then

this would be the cheapest and simplest method of preventing coronary heart

disease that could be imagined, " adds Gary Fraser, MD, PhD, cardiologist at

the LLU Heart Institute, and principal investigator for the new Adventist

Health Study.

 

http://www.llu.edu/news/pr/042502water.html