Indices of obesity and blood pressure in young men followed 32 years.

In order to assess the effects of baseline indices of obesity, lean body mass, blood pressure, and weight change on future blood pressure, 112 former college men were examined 20 and 32 years after initial examination at age 20.5 (+/- 2) yr. Baseline body weight, relative body weight, body mass index and body density all showed similar significant correlations with baseline systolic blood pressure (r = 0.35, 0.31, 0.30 - 0.31) but not baseline diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.13, 0.07, 0.10 - 0.11) or follow-up blood pressure. Changes in body weight, relative body weight, body mass index and sum of skinfolds were significantly correlated with change in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Baseline systolic blood pressure was the most powerful predictor of 20- and 32-yr follow-up systolic (r = 0.57, 0.42), but baseline diastolic was a much weaker correlate of follow-up diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.24, 0.18).