Hypertension and obesity

: An epidemiological study was carried out in a population of men aged 35-64 years in the Brodno District of Warsaw. The study included 2123 subjects, the frequency was noted of hypertension and obesity as risk factors for ischaemic heart disease, and their correlations were studied. As hypertension the following values were accepted: --borderline hypertension = 140/90 less than 160/95 mm Hg, --stabilized hypertension = greater than or equal to 160/95 mm Hg. Overweight was accepted as Quetelet's index 29.0 weight in kg/height in cm. Stable hypertension was found in 35.0% of obese men and 18.5% of non-obese men (p less than 0.001). Borderline hypertension was demonstrated in 31.6% of obese men and 22.9% of non-obese men (p less than 0.002). Normal blood pressure was found in 58.4% of non-obese men and in only 33.4% of the obese ones (p less than 0.001). The prevalence of hypertension in obese men, both systolic and diastolic hypertension, was related to age: the highest proportion of hypertensive subjects was in the oldest group, the lowest one in the youngest group. The results agree with those reported by other authors who also demonstrated a high correlation between hypertension occurrence and increasing overweight.