RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Excessive sodium (Na) and insufficient potassium (K) intake contribute to a high risk of cardiovascular events. Morocco lacks data on actual Na and K intake in adults. We estimated mean Na and K intake in a Moroccan population of adults residing in the Northwest region using 24-h urinary excretion and examined their association with blood pressure (BP). METHODS: A total of 371 adults from this region, who were recruited for the STEPs Survey Morocco 2017, completed demographic, anthropometric as well as BP data and provided a valid 24-h urine collection according to the standard World Health Organization (WHO) protocol. Multiple Linear Regression analysis was used to examine the association between 24-h urinary sodium (24-hUNa) and 24-h potassium excretion (24-hUK) with BP. RESULTS: Mean Na excretion was 2794 mg/day and mean K excretion was 1898 mg/day. Overall, only 114 (30.7%) adults met the WHO recommendation for Na intake (< 2000 mg/d) and 31 (8.4%) met the adequate level for K intake (⩾3510 mg/d). There was no association between 24-hUNa and 24-hUK with BP (P > 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION: Na intake was higher and K intake was lower than WHO recommendations in the study population. There was no association between estimated Na and K intake levels with BP in this population.
RESUMO
Treatment of kidney stones is based on symptomatic medications which are associated with side effects such as gastrointestinal symptoms (e.g., nausea, vomiting) and hepatotoxicity. The search for effective plant extracts without the above side effects has demonstrated the involvement of antioxidants in the treatment of kidney stones. A local survey in Morocco has previously revealed the frequent use of Rubia tinctorum L. (RT) for the treatment of kidney stones. In this study, we first explored whether RT ethanolic (E-RT) and ethyl acetate (EA-RT) extracts of Rubia tinctorum L. could prevent the occurrence of urolithiasis in an experimental 0.75% ethylene glycol (EG) and 2% ammonium chloride (AC)-induced rat model. Secondly, we determined the potential antioxidant potency as well as the polyphenol composition of these extracts. An EG/AC regimen for 10 days induced the formation of bipyramid-shaped calcium oxalate crystals in the urine. Concomitantly, serum and urinary creatinine, urea, uric acid, phosphorus, calcium, sodium, potassium, and chloride were altered. The co-administration of both RT extracts prevented alterations in all these parameters. In the EG/AC-induced rat model, the antioxidants- and polyphenols-rich E-RT and EA-RT extracts significantly reduced the presence of calcium oxalate in the urine, and prevented serum and urinary biochemical alterations together with kidney tissue damage associated with urolithiasis. Moreover, we demonstrated that the beneficial preventive effects of E-RT co-administration were more pronounced than those obtained with EA-RT. The superiority of E-RT was associated with its more potent antioxidant effect, due to its high content in polyphenols.