Obesity and Overweight Increases Blood Pressure in Elders

Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have a negative effect on healthy¹. According to previous studies obesity was considered as an important factor for cardiovascular risk that causes and maintains other risk factors such as hypertension. Body weight is not only regarded as a risk factor for hypertension, but also a parameter that controls the health status of hypertensive patients, the progression of the disease and the treatment of the disease. It is observed that patients with normal weight spend more balanced life².

Hypertension is a multi-factorial disease resulting from the interaction of genetic and environmental factors including nutritional factors. Numerous epidemiological studies have reported the relationship between lifestyle, diet and blood pressure in different populations. Thus, changes in eating behaviors i.e. reducing dietary intake of cholesterol, saturated fat and salt, reduces blood pressure.

In this context another study was carried out to analyze the relationship between anthropometric measurements and hypertension. A survey was conducted to analyze the weight status of hypertensive patients, to estimate the prevalence of underweight, normal weight, overweight and obesity and to examine the association of body weight with daily life patients including the evolution of the disease³.

It was accomplished that a poor diet and an inactive lifestyle and even smoking and other factors are involved in the presence of hypertension. Patients with hypertension have a low socio-economic level and 83.33% had no occupation, 70% were illiterate and 80% were from a large family. The majority of the patients had low physical activity, 48% were characterized by walking and household chores, the remaining patients were almost inactive.

The prevalence of hypertension is higher in obese subjects. It was established that nutritional discipline with hypertensive medication should be added in the process of weight loss.

Having a normal weight was a solution to this serious public health problem, researchers urge health authorities to launch a national program for good control of body weight in hypertensive patients.

Keywords:

Hypertension, underweight, normal weight, overweight, obesity, hypertensive patients, national program, inactive lifestyle, household chores, nthropometric measurements.

References:

WHO. January 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2016 .“Obesity and overweight Fact sheet N°311”.
Sorof, J., & Daniels, S. (2002). Obesity hypertension in children: a problem of epidemic proportions. Hypertension, 40(4), 441-447.
Abbes, M.A. and Bereksi-Reguig, K., 2018. Obesity Increases Blood Pressure in North-African Elderly Subjects. Pak. J. Nutri., 17: 152-155.