AUTHOR=Xu Lisi , Zhang Cong , Liu Yan , Shang Xiuli , Huang Daifa 

TITLE=Association between dietary potassium intake and severe headache or migraine in US adults: a population-based analysis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2023.1255468

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2023.1255468

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=<sec id="sec1"><title>Background</title><p>Migraine is a prevalent neurovascular headache disorder. The link between dietary potassium and blood pressure has been established. We sought to delineate the relationship between dietary potassium intake and the prevalence of migraines.</p></sec><sec id="sec2"><title>Methods</title><p>We conducted a cross-sectional analysis using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) spanning 1999–2004, comprising 10,254 participants aged ≥20 years. Participants who reported severe headaches or migraine in the self-report questionnaire were identified as migraineurs. A 24-h dietary recall methodology was used to assess dietary potassium intake. Multivariate regression analysis and restricted cubic spline (RCS) modeling were utilized to elucidate the relationship between dietary potassium and migraines.</p></sec><sec id="sec3"><title>Results</title><p>Among the 10,254 participants, 20.1% were identified with migraine or severe headaches. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for migraine occurrence in the Q2 dietary potassium intake (1771–2,476 mg/d) was 0.84 (95% CI: 0.73–0.97, <italic>p</italic> = 0.021) compared to the lowest quartile (Q1, ≤ 1771 mg/d). The relationship between dietary potassium and migraine exhibited an L-shaped pattern (non-linear, <italic>p</italic> = 0.016) with an inflection at approximately 1439.3 mg/d. In the subgroup analysis, when compared to Q1, who had the lowest dietary potassium intake, the adjusted OR for Q2 in females, those in the medium-high household income group, and with a Body Mass Index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m<sup>2</sup> were as follows: (OR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.69–0.98), (OR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.66–0.95), and (OR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.66–0.93), respectively. No significant interaction was observed across groups after adjusting for all possible covariates.</p></sec><sec id="sec4"><title>Conclusion</title><p>The relationship between dietary potassium intake and migraine prevalence among US adults appears to follow an L-shaped curve.</p></sec>