The Association between Basal Metabolic Index and Blood Pressure in School Children of Urban Area in Jaipur District

Abstract

Introduction: The trend of hypertension in children and adolescents has been on an incline in the past few decades. Principal factors held responsible for this increase include lifestyle changes and unhealthy eating habits. The aim of this study was to study the association of body mass index and blood pressure and factors contributing to an increase in the body mass index in school going children. Methodology: This prospective cross-sectional observational study was conducted over a span of one year on randomly selected apparently healthy school going children of Jaipur, Rajasthan. A modified WHO questionnaire was used to collect the data including physical activity, dietary habits, and sleeping pattern. This was followed by anthropometric and blood pressure (BP) measurements. Results: Out of 135 children recruited in the study, 62 (45.93%) were females and 73 (54.07%) were males. Prehypertension was found in 8.15% cases and hypertension was reported in 5.59% cases. There was a significant correlation between hypertension and BMI (p<0.003). In normal category, only pre-hypertension was reported in 2.22% cases and no case of hypertension were found. Amongst overweight children, both pre-hypertension and hypertension were present, 6.67% and 2.22%, respectively whereas, 15.65% of the obese children were found to have pre-hypertension and 13.33% had hypertension. Conclusion: There was a significant positive correlation of an increased body mass index with unhealthy eating habits, reduced physical activity, and increased stress levels. This indicates that a healthy lifestyle, if adopted early in childhood can control and prevent future cardiovascular events.

Keywords

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