Vitamin C intake and risk of ischemic heart disease in a population with a high prevalence of smoking.
OBJECTIVE
Epidemiological data on the relationship between vitamin C intake and ischemic heart disease (IHD) risk are limited in the Asian population, with a high prevalence of smoking. This study aims to investigate the association between vitamin C intake and the incidence of non-fatal IHD in Korean men.


METHODS
The case group consisted of 108 patients with electrocardiogram-confirmed myocardial infarction or angiographically confirmed (>or=50% stenosis) coronary artery disease (CAD) who were admitted to a university teaching hospital in Seoul, Korea. The controls were 142 age-matched patients admitted to the departments of ophthalmology and orthopedic surgery at the same hospital. Vitamin C intake was assessed by a nutritionist using a semi-quantitative food frequency method, and body mass index (BMI), tobacco use and past history of cardiovascular disease were determined by examination and interview.


RESULTS
After controlling for cardiovascular risk factors, including BMI, smoking, past history of hypertension, past history of hyperlipidemia, dietary intakes of energy, total fat (or subtype of fat), cholesterol, beta-carotene, and vitamin E, the odds ratio (OR) of non-fatal IHD was 0.34 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.13-0.90) in the highest tertile of vitamin C intake compared with those in the lowest tertile. In a subgroup analysis, which compared nonsmokers in the highest tertile of vitamin C intake to current smokers in the lowest tertile of vitamin C intake, the odds ratio of developing non-fatal IHD was 0.12 (95% CI 0.02-0.77).


CONCLUSIONS
This study suggests that higher intake of vitamin C is associated with the decreased risk of non-fatal IHD in a population with a high prevalence of smoking.
Nam
Chung Mo
CM
Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Oh
Kyung Won
KW
Lee
Kang Hee
KH
Jee
Sun Ha
SH
Cho
Seung Yun
SY
Shim
Won Heum
WH
Suh
Il
I
D000975:Antioxidants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000975:Antioxidants; D001205:Ascorbic Acid