Body size is a major predictor of
high blood pressure in both blacks and whites but racial differences may affect the association of weight and blood pressure, according to study results presented at the
American Society of Hypertension’s Nineteenth Annual Scientific Meeting.
“Despite similar obesity-related health risks in all populations, the specific level of risk associated with excess weight may vary with race, age and gender,” said Jill E. Abell, MPH, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston. “The Black Pooling Project, which includes the Evans County, GA, Heart Study, provides a resource to assess the effects of body mass on blood pressure in a population of black and white men and women.”
The Evans County Heart Study is a community-based cohort of 3,102 people identified since 1960. Data at baseline included age, systolic and diastolic blood pressure and body mass index (BMI). BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to both men and women.
Ms. Abell described results from a cohort of 3,089 people. The cohort consisted of 941 white males, 970 white females, 534 black males and 644 black females. BMI was defined as underweight, normal, overweight and obese.
The average age for the four gender-racial groups was 46. Approximately half of the participants had a BMI greater than 25. A gender-racial breakdown of overweight or obese included 46% of white males, 44% of white females, 38% of black males and 59% of black females.
“Blood pressure increased with BMI in all four ethnic-gender groups,” she said.