Examining Whether a Hydration and Potassium Intervention can Attenuate Racial Differences in Cardiorenal Health

Abstract

Compared with White adults, minoritized adults experience increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) and end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD) risk, two of the leading causes of mortality in the US. Underhydration is associated with all-cause mortality and several risk factors for CVD and CKD (e.g., obesity, insulin resistance, and hypertension (HTN)). Underhydration is also associated with higher plasma copeptin concentration ([copeptin]), an arginine vasopressin surrogate, associated with multiple chronic diseases. Another dietary commonality for the general population is inadequate potassium (K+) intake, which also increases HTN risk, and increasing K+ intake may help decrease blood pressure (BP) [3-5]. Overall, racial and ethnic minority (‘minoritized’) adults are more likely to be underhydrated and consume less K+ relative to White adults. However, hydration disparities are multifaceted, with various social determinants of health (SDoH) influencing hydration practices but our understanding is incomplete. Thus, there is a critical need for empirical studies on 1) the role of SDoH contributing to racial disparities in hydration and dietary practices and cardiovascular and kidney health; and 2) potential strategies to address these disparities. Our central hypothesis is that there are habitual racial differences in fluid intake, [copeptin], BP, measures of hydration (i.e., urine 24-hr volume, osmolality, and specific gravity) and kidney function, but these racial differences could be attenuated by short-term (14-days) hydration intervention with water combined with K+ (↑H2O+↑K+). Further, we plan to investigate, via cross sectional analyses, habitual differences in objective hydration metrics and hydration perceptions.