Legume and soy consumption and the risk of hypertension: a systematic review and dose–response meta-analysis of prospective studies

Background Several studies have suggested that high intakes of legumes and soy products are associated with a lower risk of hypertension; however, the results have been inconsistent. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to clarify the association between legumes and soy consumption and the risk of hypertension. Methods PubMed and Embase databases were searched up to 14 June 2025. Random effects models were used to calculate summary relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for the association between legume or soy consumption and hypertension risk. Heterogeneity was evaluated using I 2 . The likelihood of causality was evaluated using World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) criteria. Results 12 prospective studies were included in the meta-analysis. The summary RR for high versus low intake of legumes was 0.84 (95% CI 0.77 to 0.93, I 2 =65%, p heterogeneity =0.003, n=10 studies, 86 098 cases, 309 853 participants) and for soy was 0.81 (95% CI 0.70 to 0.93, I 2 =82%, p heterogeneity