A British study warns of increased blood pressure in children, particularly those who are overweight, which exposes them to increased cardiovascular risk.
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- With high blood pressure affecting one in three adults, researchers are now sounding the alarm about the “ticking time bomb” of soaring blood pressure in children.
- “One in twenty 11-year-olds now has the same blood pressure as an adult.” Children who were overweight and exercised less tended to have blood pressure that was not only higher, but also rose faster with age.
- “The more regularly children practiced physical activity, the less significant the increase was,” note the researchers, who are calling on public authorities to combat “the pandemic of inactive people” in schools.
High blood pressure is a silent disease that, if left untreated, poses a major risk of cardiovascular events and neurodegenerative complications. While it concerns one in three adults and only half know it, a team of researchers from the University of Essex in the United Kingdom is today sounding the alarm on the “time bomb” what the spike in blood pressure in children represents.
One in twenty 11-year-olds has the same blood pressure as an adult
As part of their work, published in the journal Pediatric Researchscientists followed more than 1,500 young British children during their school careers between the ages of 11 and 16. Among them, more than 30% were overweight or obese; 15% of boys and 19% of girls suffered from high blood pressure, and 22% of children from prehypertension. More surprisingly, 4% of pupils had a blood pressure of 120/80 in the 6th grade, which “is normal for adults, but worrying for children,” can we read in a communicated. “One in twenty 11-year-olds now has the same blood pressure as an adult.”
The study found, unsurprisingly, that blood pressure naturally increases as children get older. That said, children who were overweight and exercised less tended to have blood pressure that was not only higher, but also increased faster with age. “Sixth graders with already large waistlines who continued to gain weight were most likely to have the highest blood pressure in the second grade.”
Cardiovascular diseases: causes that date back to adolescence
While waist size appears to be the main factor in blood pressure spikes, exercise can help ward off the risk. “The more regularly the children practiced physical activity, the less the increase [de la pression artérielle] was important”note the researchers, who are calling on public authorities to fight against “the pandemic of inactive people” through physical activity programs in schools.
Cardiovascular diseases, the leading cause of death in the world, “are an affliction of adulthood, but their causes can be traced back to childhood and adolescence,” researchers say. “Our study provides further evidence that there is an urgent need to promote healthy and active lifestyles among students to ensure the future health of the next generation of adults.”
