在最近的报告中，有人提出了几个生物学上合理的因素来解释饮用水硬度与心血管疾病之间的负相关性。这些因素包括软水腐蚀性、镁以及钙（Ca）在肠道吸收微量元素中的作用。本研究的目的是确定这些假设的有效性，以供未来流行病学调查使用。通过测定钙、镁（Mg）、铅（Pb）和镉（Cd）对白鸽血压和动脉粥样硬化形成的影响，验证了这些假设的有效性。这些元素的浓度增加到两倍- 去离子水在饮用水中这些元素的正常范围内。结果表明，饮用水中铅或镉的存在显著增加血压和主动脉粥样斑块的数量和大小。然而，Ca的存在显著降低了Cd或Pd对血压、主动脉斑块数量和大小的影响。包括7个参考文献、表格、图表。

In recent reports, several biologically plausible factors have been suggested to explain the negative correlation between drinking water hardness and cardiovascular disease. These factors include soft water corrosiveness, magnesium, and the role of calcium (Ca) in intestinal absorption of trace elements. The purpose of this study is to determine the validity of these hypotheses for future epidemiological investigation. The validity of these hypotheses was tested by determining the effect of Ca, magnesium (Mg), lead (Pb), and cadmium (Cd) on blood pressure and the development of atherosclerosis in the white Carneau pigeon. Concentrations of these elements were added to double-deionized water within the normal ranges of these elements in drinking water. Results indicate that the presence of Pb or Cd in drinking water significantly increases both blood pressure and the number and size of aortic atherosclerotic plaques. However, the presence of Ca significantly reduces the effects of Cd or Pd on blood pressure and on the number and size of aortic plaques. Includes 7 references, tables, figures.