Childhood obesity driving near-doubling of global high blood pressure rates, major review finds

Childhood obesity is emerging as a dominant force behind a dramatic rise in high blood pressure among children and teenagers worldwide, according to the largest global review of its kind. Researchers warn that soaring obesity levels, fuelled by poor diets and declining physical activity, have pushed millions of under-nineteens into dangerously high blood pressure at an age when they should be at their healthiest.

The meta-analysis, published in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, found that the proportion of children and teenagers living with hypertension has almost doubled in the past twenty years, rising from 3.2 per cent to 6.2 per cent. That equates to 114 million young people now living with a condition known to cause lifelong harm, including heart and kidney disease.

Obesity was identified as a “substantial driver” of the surge. The review found that nearly 19 per cent of children living with obesity had high blood pressure, compared with fewer than 3 per cent of those considered a healthy weight, a stark indication of the scale of risk facing young people with excess body fat.

Prof Igor Rudan, director of the Centre for Global Health Research at the University of Edinburgh’s Usher Institute and a study author, said the findings should prompt “serious alarm”. “The nearly twofold increase in childhood high blood pressure over twenty years is strongly linked to soaring childhood obesity,” he said.

Experts warn that the implications of obesity-related hypertension stretch far beyond adolescence. Prof Steve Turner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, who was not involved in the review, said paediatricians were witnessing this trend first-hand. “This sharp rise in high blood pressure among children is deeply concerning and largely driven by increasing childhood obesity, an entirely preventable condition,” he said.

“Children are now presenting with conditions once unheard of in the young, such as type two diabetes, alongside asthma, mental health issues and hypertension. Without urgent action, we are heading towards a public health emergency.”

The study also highlighted the scale of prehypertension, which affects 8.2 per cent of children and teenagers worldwide. Rates peak in adolescence at 11.8 per cent. Those with prehypertension, which is also strongly associated with excess weight, are far more likely to progress to full hypertension.

Dr Peige Song of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, another study author, said lifestyle factors were overwhelmingly to blame. “Unhealthy diets, decreased physical activity and the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity are driving this rise,” she said.

She emphasised the role parents can play in preventing obesity-related hypertension by encouraging balanced diets low in salt and sugar, and ensuring children are active daily. Families with a history of high blood pressure are advised to monitor their children’s blood pressure at home to detect problems early.

Prof Bryan Williams, chief scientific and medical officer at the British Heart Foundation, said the rise in obesity-linked hypertension was “very concerning”. “Elevated blood pressure in childhood often persists into adulthood, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke later in life,” he said. But he stressed that obesity-related hypertension was reversible, provided action was taken early.

He urged governments to take bolder steps to reduce obesity rates among children. “This includes expanding restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy products and exploring further measures to drive the food industry to make our everyday foods healthier.”