Does an antihypertensive diet cost more? Analysis from the Chinese Heart-Healthy diet trial.

Abstract

Objective: To determine whether the Chinese heart-healthy diet (Sichuan cuisine version) (CHH diet-SC) was more expensive than the conventional Sichuan diet and explore the food groups and nutrients that mainly affected the cost of CHH diet-SC.

Design: Cost analysis of 4-week intervention diets in the Sichuan center representing southwestern China in the CHH diet study.

Setting: A multicentre, parallel-group, single-blind, randomised feeding trial evaluating the efficacy of lowering blood pressure with the cuisine-based CHH diet.

Participants: Totally, fifty-three participants with hypertension aged 25-75 years in the Sichuan center were randomised into the control group (n 26) or the CHH diet-SC group (n 27).

Results: The CHH diet-SC was more expensive than the control diet (¥27·87 ± 2·41 v. ¥25·18 ± 2·79 equals $3·90 ± 0·34 v. $3·52 ± 0·39, P < 0·001), and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio for a 1-mm Hg systolic blood pressure reduction was ¥9·12 ($1·28). Intakes and the cost of seafood, dairy products, fruits, soybeans and nuts, whole grains and mixed beans were higher for the CHH diet-SC than for the control diet (P < 0·001). Intakes of vitamin B₁, vitamin B₆, vitamin C, Mg and phosphorus were positively correlated with the cost (P < 0·05).

Conclusions: The CHH diet-SC costs more than the conventional Sichuan diet, partly due to the high cost of specific food groups. Positive correlations between the intakes of vitamin B₁, vitamin B₆, vitamin C, Mg, phosphorus and the dietary cost could be a direction to adjust the composition within the food groups to reduce the cost of the CHH diet-SC.