Correlation of obesity indicies and blood pressure among non obese adults in Zaria, Northern Nigeria

Epidemiological studies from different populations have reported significant association between different anthropometric indicators and hypertension in obese adults but few data are available for the non obese adults of this study population. This study assessed the association between adiposity measures and hypertension risk and analyzed various anthropometric indices (body mass index (BMI), waist-height ratio, waist-hip ratio, waist and hip circumferences) as predictors of hypertension among non obese adults of Samaru, a suburb of Zaria in Kaduna state, Nigeria. The study protocol was duly approved by the Ethical committee of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Shika, Zaria. This cross sectional study examined a total of 174 non obese adults, 35 to 70 years of age (male, 91; female, 83) who were randomly selected for the study. All subjects were normotensive, non obese and refrained from taking any medications known to influence energy regulation. Normal-weight BMI was defined as a range of 18.5 to 24.9 kg/m2 and overweight BMI ≤ 27 kg/m2 was considered in the study. Descriptive statistics, partial correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to determine the relationship between anthropometric measurements and blood pressure parameters, after controlling for age. Results showed significant (p ≤ 0.05) relationships between the systolic blood pressure (BP), diastolic blood pressure (BP) as well as mean arterial blood pressure (BP) and the indices of adiposity in male (waist circumference, BMI and waist-height ratio) than in female (waist-height ratio) group. Waist-height ratio was the most important and consistent index of adiposity that associated with the hypertensive risk in both male and female non obese adult groups, particularly with systolic BP. It then means that a decrease in intra-abdominal fat could reduce blood pressure and should be a target in the management of hypertension. Key words: Non obese adults, blood pressure, waist-height ratio, Zaria.