title: Obesity markers and blood pressure in a sample of Portuguese children and adolescents.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Little information exists regarding the effect of several obesity markers on blood pressure (BP) levels in youth.
  
  
  METHODS
  Transverse study including 2494 boys and 2589 girls.
  
  
  METHODS
  Height, weight and waist were measured according to the international criteria and body fat (BF) by bioimpedance. BP was measured by an automated device. Hypertension was defined using sex-specific, age-specific and height-specific observation-points.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Body mass index (BMI) and waist were positively related with systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and heart rate in both sexes, whereas the relationships with BF were less consistent. Stepwise linear regression analysis showed that BMI was positively related with SBP and DBP in both sexes, whereas BF was negatively related with SBP in both sexes and with heart rate in boys only; finally, waist was positively related with SBP in boys and heart rate in girls. Age and heart rate-adjusted values of SBP and DBP increased with BMI: for SBP, 117+/-1, 123+/-1 and 124+/-1 mmHg in normal, overweight and obese boys, respectively; corresponding values for girls were 111+/-1, 114+/-1 and 116+/-2 mmHg (mean+/-SE, P<0.001). Overweight and obese boys had an odds ratio for being hypertensive of 2.26 (95% confidence interval: 1.79-2.86) and 3.36 (2.32-4.87), respectively; corresponding values for girls were 1.58 (confidence interval 1.25-1.99) and 2.31 (1.53-3.50).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BMI, not BF or waist, is consistently and independently related to BP levels in children; overweight and obesity considerably increase the risk of hypertension.
authors.affiliation: Nutrition and Metabolism Unit, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Bugnon, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Duarte
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rebelo
authors.forename: Joana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Teixeira
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marques-Vidal
authors.forename: João Miguel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Oliveira
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000886:Anthropometry; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011174:Portugal / Q000453:epidemiology; D012307:Risk Factors