Abstract 18070: Water Consumption Does not Influence All Cause or Cardiovascular Mortality: A Followup Study of Patients in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Abstract

Data about association of quantity of daily water intake and mortality remain sparse. This study aimed to delineate this association using follow-up nationally representative data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). We hypothesized that water intake would not impact all cause or cardiovascular (cv) mortality. Water intake was defined as any intake of pure water itself and not taking into account amounts of water as ingredients or found in other foods. Patients were included in the study if all of the following criteria were met: 1) follow up mortality data was available, 2) age ≥ 45 years old, 3) reported amount of average water consumption. Patients were stratified into following groups of average daily raw water consumption: 1) no water consumption, 2) ≤ 2 cups, 3) > 2 to ≤ 4 cups, 4) > 4 to ≤ 6 cups, 5) > 6 to ≤ 8 cups, 6) > 8 cups. All-cause mortality, ischemia related mortality, congestive heart failure related mortality, and stroke related mortality were then assessed. Odds-ratios, 95% confidence intervals, and p-values were calculated for univariate analysis, using the more than six cups to less than or equal to 8 cups of water a day group as reference. These were then adjusted for race, gender, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, current smoking status, history of diabetes, total cholesterol, LDL, and HDL levels for a multivariate analysis. P-values of less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. A total of 7,666 patients were included for analysis. After calculation of odds ratios, no significant differences were noted across any group for all-cause or cause-specific cv mortality. Univariate and multivariate analyses are detailed in attached figure 1. In this cohort study, daily water consumption did not impact all-cause mortality or cause specific cv mortality. This holds across a spectrum of water consumption when compared to a reference group of 6 to 8 cups a day.