Abstract Body: Background: Hypertension disparities are amplified by structural barriers, including limited access to healthy food. Food is Medicine interventions show promise for improving dietary quality and hypertension outcomes. We assessed baseline characteristics of adults with hypertension enrolled in the THRIVE Food is Medicine pilot trial.
Methods: This baseline analysis included adults with hypertension from Maryland healthy food priority areas, enrolled in a pilot randomized controlled trial testing a culturally tailored Food is Medicine intervention using community-based strategies. Baseline data were collected on sociodemographic characteristics, clinical measures, blood pressure (BP) assessments, laboratory values, and dietary patterns using validated instruments including 24-hour dietary recalls and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) adherence scoring.
Results: Of 80 THRIVE pilot trial participants, mean age was 54.3±11.4 years; 62% identified as Black/African American, 34% as Hispanic/Mexican American, 57% were female (Table 1). Despite high educational attainment (44.9% with ≥master’s degree), economic vulnerabilities were evident: 70% earned <$50,000 annually, 28% were unemployed, and 69% had health insurance coverage. Food insecurity affected over one-third of participants (36%), with 8% reporting that food often “did not last” and 28% reporting this “sometimes” occurred. Mean systolic and diastolic BP was 138.1 mmHg and 82.6 mmHg, respectively; 45% had Stage 2 hypertension, only 58% owned home BP monitors. Mean total cholesterol was 193.2±46.7mg/dL, mean HbA1c was 5.9±0.6%. Regarding dietary quality, mean DASH adherence score was 3.83 out of 9 possible points, and 58% scored below 4.5 (Figure 1). Potassium intake was low, only 29% of participants met DASH targets.
Conclusion: From these baseline data, THRIVE participants faced multiple intersecting vulnerabilities, including economic insecurity, limited healthcare access, food insecurity, and poor dietary quality. This profile shows the complex determinants of driving hypertension disparities, substantial cardiovascular risk burden and highlights the critical need for tailored interventions addressing food access, nutrition education and hypertension self-management. These findings will inform intervention refinement and guide larger-scale trials focused on hypertension disparities in under-resourced communities.