Healthy living may lower the chance of dying from heart disease in men with high blood pressure. This discovery is the result of 29 years of investigation. The study findings were published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, an ESC journal. “This was the first study to evaluate the combined effects of fitness and blood pressure on the risk of dying from heart disease,” said Jari Laukkanen, a professor at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, Finland.
“The findings suggest that physical activity may help avoid some of the negative effects of high blood pressure.” About 1.3 billion individuals between the ages of 30 and 79 suffer from hypertension or high blood pressure. Globally, high blood pressure is one of the main causes of premature death and a significant risk factor for heart attack and stroke. In line with previous studies, high levels of cardiorespiratory fitness have been linked to longer lifespans.
This study looked at the relationship between blood pressure, fitness and the risk of cardiovascular death. The study included 2,280 men aged 42 to 61 living in eastern Finland and enrolled in the Kuopio Ischemic Heart Disease Risk Factors Study. Baseline measurements were conducted between 1984 and 1989. These included blood pressure and cardiorespiratory fitness, which was assessed as maximal oxygen uptake while riding a stationary bicycle.
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Blood pressure was classified as normal or high, and fitness was classified as low, moderate, or high. The mean age at baseline was 53 years. The participants were followed up until 2018. During an average follow-up of 29 years, there were 644 deaths due to heart disease. Death from cardiovascular disease after adjustment for age, body mass index, cholesterol levels, smoking status, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, antihypertensive drug use, alcohol consumption, physical activity, socioeconomic status and high susceptibility C Risk analysis was done. -reactive protein (a marker of inflammation).
Considering only blood pressure, high blood pressure was associated with a 39 percent increased risk of cardiovascular mortality (hazard ratio), compared with normal values [HR] 1.39; 95 percent confidence interval [CI] 1.17–1.63). Considering fitness alone, lower fitness was associated with a 74 percent higher odds of cardiovascular death (HR 1.74; 95 percent CI 1.35–2.23), compared with higher levels.
To evaluate the joint associations of blood pressure and fitness with the risk of cardiovascular death, participants were classified into four groups: 1) normal blood pressure and high fitness (this was the reference group for comparison); 2) normal blood pressure and low fitness; 3) high blood pressure and high fitness; 4) High blood pressure and low fitness. Men with high blood pressure and low fitness had more than twice the risk of cardiovascular death compared with those with normal blood pressure and high fitness (HR 2.35; 95 percent CI 1.81–3.04).
When men with high blood pressure had high fitness levels, the higher risk of cardiovascular risk remained but was weakened: it was 55 percent higher compared with those with normal blood pressure and high fitness (HR 1.55; 95 percent CI 1.16–2.07).
Professor Laukkanen said: “Both high blood pressure and low fitness levels were associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. Higher fitness levels attenuated, but did not eliminate, the increased risk of cardiovascular mortality in men with high blood pressure.”