High blood pressure ‘starts in childhood’
OVERWEIGHT teenagers are more likely to go on to suffer high blood pressure in middle age, a study claims.
High blood pressure can lead to heart attack, stroke and kidney damage and is one of the most preventable causes of premature death worldwide.
But the seeds are sown in childhood – and managing kids’ weight can protect them in adulthood, according to a paper presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Venice.
Study author Dr Lina Lilja of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden said: “Preventing overweight and obesity beginning in childhood matters when it comes to achieving a healthy blood pressure in later life.” Researchers analysed data on 858 men and 825 women born from 1948 to 1968, looking at links between childhood BMI and systolic (when the heart beats) and diastolic (when it is between beats) blood pressure from 50 to 64 years old. In men, an increase of one BMI unit from the childhood average was associated with a 1.30 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure and a 0.75 mmHg increase in diastolic blood pressure in later life. A unit above the pubertal average was linked to a 1.03 mmHg rise in systolic and a 0.53 mmHg rise in diastolic blood pressure in middle age. In women, a unit above pubertal average was associated with a 0.96 mmHg higher systolic and 0.77 mmHg higher diastolic blood pressure, irrespective of childhood BMI.
The World Health Organisation estimates 1.28 billion people aged 30 to 79 globally have blood pressure, or hypertension.
A high BMI in adults is strongly associated with high blood pressure, but until now the effect of high BMI in childhood on midlife hypertension was not known.
Dr Jenny Kindblom of Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden said: “Our findings indicate high blood pressure may originate in early life. This study is important given the rising tide of obesity among children. It is vital we turn the focus from adults to include younger ages.”