Leptin is not associated independently with hypertension in Japanese-Brazilian women

Abstract

We evaluated the relationship of leptin with hypertension adjusted for body mass index (BMI) and/or waist circumference in a population of Japanese-Brazilian women aged > or = 30 years with centrally distributed adiposity. After excluding diabetic subjects, the study subjects - who participated in a population-based study on the prevalence of metabolic syndrome - showed prevalence rates of obesity (BMI > or = 25 kg/m²) and central adiposity (waist > or = 80 cm) of 32.0 and 37.8%, respectively. The hypertensive group (N = 162) was older, had higher BMI (24.9 ± 4.2 vs 23.3 ± 3.4 kg/m², P or = 80 cm) Japanese-Brazilian women, but do not support a role for leptin in the elevation of blood pressure.

Keywords

• Hypertension
• Body fat distribution
• Insulin
• Leptin
• Centrally obese
• Metabolic syndrome