Malnutrition can Increase High Blood Pressure Risk: Researchers

Malnutrition during childhood can increase high blood pressure risk in adulthood, a new study suggests.

The study by researchers at the University of the West Indies shows that millions of malnourished children worldwide have high risk of developing chronic health problems later in life.

Hypertension or high blood pressure is a serious condition that can lead to coronary heart disease, heart failure and several other health problems. According to National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, the condition often has no signs, meaning that it can take years to be detected.

"If nutritional needs are not met during this time, when structures of the body are highly susceptible to potentially irreversible change, it could have long-term consequences on heart anatomy and blood flow later in life," said Terrence Forrester, Ph.D., study senior author and chief scientist, UWI Solutions for Developing Countries at the University of the West Indies, Mona, in Kingston, Jamaica, according to a news release.

The study was based on data from 116 adults who weren't adequately fed during childhood. Researchers compared their medical data with that of 45 people who had sufficient food to eat. All participants were in their 20s or 30s and underwent several tests that checked their heart condition. Researchers measured their height, weight and blood pressure levels.

It was found that people who were malnourished as children had less efficient pumping of the heart. They even had higher diastolic blood pressure readings and had a higher peripheral resistance, which is a measurement of the resistance to blood flow in small blood vessels. The team said that the test participants had higher risk of developing hypertension.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, around 8.3 million children in the U.S lived in homes with low food security in 2012. Researchers said that adequate nutrition during childhood could lower the risk of future health problems.

"Such an investment in nutrition and general health will have huge public health dividends, including these longer-term risks of chronic heart and metabolic diseases that cost so much in human lives," Forrester said.

The study is published in the journal Hypertension and is funded by the New Zealand Health Research Council.