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A total of 3,318 men and women from a region in rural China were randomized to receive daily either a multiple vitamin/mineral supplement or a placebo. Deaths that occurred in the participants were ascertained and classified according to cause over the 6-year period from 1985 to 1991. At the end of supplementation, blood pressure readings were taken, and the prevalence of hypertension was determined. There was a slight reduction in overall mortality in the supplement group (relative risk (RR) = 0.93, 95% confidence interval (Cl) 0.75–1.16), with the decreased relative risk most pronounced for cerebrovascular disease deaths (RR = 0.63, 95% Cl 0.37–1.07). This benefit was greater for men (RR = 0.42, 95% Cl 0.19–0.93) than for women (RR = 0.93, 95% Cl 0.44–1.98). Among the survivors, the presence of elevations in both systolic and diastolic blood pressures was less common in those who received the supplement (RR for men = 0.43, 95% Cl 0.28–0.65; RR for women = 0.92, 95% Cl 0.68–1.24). This study indicates that supplementation with a multivitamin/mineral combination may have reduced mortality from cerebrovascular disease and the prevalence of hypertension in this rural population with a micronutrient-poor diet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) have been developed specifically for use among African Americans, and reports of FFQ performance among African Americans or low-income groups assessed using biochemical indicators are scarce. The authors conducted a validation study within the Southern Community Cohort Study to evaluate FFQ-estimated intakes of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, lycopene, folate, and alpha-tocopherol in relation to blood levels of these nutrients. Included were 255 nonsmoking participants (125 African Americans, 130 non-Hispanic whites) who provided a blood sample at the time of study enrollment and FFQ administration in 2002-2004. Levels of biochemical indicators of each micronutrient (alpha-tocopherol among women only) significantly increased with increasing FFQ-estimated intake (adjusted correlation coefficients: alpha-carotene, 0.35; beta-carotene, 0.28; beta-cryptoxanthin, 0.35; lutein/zeaxanthin, 0.28; lycopene, 0.15; folate, 0.26; alpha-tocopherol, 0.26 among women; all P's < 0.05). Subjects in the top decile of FFQ intake had blood levels that were 27% (lycopene) to 178% (beta-cryptoxanthin) higher than those of subjects in the lowest decile. Satisfactory FFQ performance was noted even for participants with less than a high school education. Some variation was noted in the FFQ's ability to predict blood levels for subgroups defined by race, sex, and other characteristics, but overall the Southern Community Cohort Study FFQ appears to generate useful dietary exposure rankings in the cohort.