New research findings from Tulane University in New Orleans have found that half of adults with high blood pressure were overweight when they were children.
While it is known there is a link between hypertension and metabolic syndrome, researchers have not had a lot of information about how high blood pressure develops and other factors of metabolic syndrome in children at risk for developing hypertension.
Over 3,200 study participants were screened during childhood (ages 4 to 11), adolescence (ages 12 to 18) and adulthood (ages 19 to 42). The research was part of the Bogalusa Heart Study, the world's longest-running study of heart disease risk factors that begin in childhood.
Researchers say the results reveal the early natural history of hypertension. They stress not addressing the national trend toward overweight children could lead to an epidemic of adult high blood pressure in the future.
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