LIKE ANY teenager, this 20-year-old loved noodles as his go-to food. He was borderline obese but everybody attributed this to adolescence, thinking he would outgrow his puppy fat as he adulted in time. So two years ago, his parents were in for a rude shock when he fainted while watching TV and slumped to the floor at their home in Pune. He had a hypertensive emergency as his blood pressure levels had skyrocketed to 200/140 mmHg as against 120/80 mmHg. Just 18 at the time, he was diagnosed with “essential hypertension,” which basically means “his high blood pressure was not due to any medical condition,” says Pune-based Dr Vijay Natarajan, cardiac surgeon and Director of Surgical Services at Bharati Hospital. However, the wake-up call helped him alter his lifestyle and with daily exercise, he has lost 20 kg now but continues to be on a low dose of medication. “At least 80-90 per cent of youngsters do not have symptoms and then come in with sudden complications. Do not neglect your BP status and see that you keep 130/80 mmHg as your target. That should be the aim,” says Dr Sunil Sathe, consulting cardiologist at Ruby Hall Clinic. According to experts, blood pressure levels rise in young people in their academic years largely due to sedentary habits, school work, tutorial and assignment commitments. And once they join workplaces, they fall into predictable patterns of addictive peer behaviour — keeping long hours at work, battling stress, getting inadequate sleep, indulging in alcohol binges or smoking and dealing with troublesome interpersonal relationships. “When these forms of assaults on the blood vessels continue over time, hypertension becomes sustained,” explains Dr K Srinath Reddy, honorary distinguished professor at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI). Adds Dr Natarajan, “Unknowingly the younger generation is at a higher risk because of their craving for fast food and eating out. Their daily intake of salt and fat goes up much higher than the recommended daily allowance (RDA).” Doctors say the long-term impact of hypertension on young individuals exacerbates their predisposition to metabolic disorders like diabetes, obesity and heart attacks. According to Dr Reddy, “prolonged damage to blood vessels due to uncontrolled hypertension results in heart attacks, brain strokes, kidney failure and congestive heart failure. Over time and with advancing years, hypertension may cause aneurysms of the aorta, peripheral vascular disease, loss of cognitive function, vascular dementia and loss of vision.” Addiction to foods high in salt content, MSG, polyunsaturated fats, irregular sleeping habits, smoking and alcohol, are among the factors that have led to the increasing prevalence of hypertension among youth, feels Dr Natarajan. “Besides, abnormal obesity is on the rise, carrying the penalty of hypertension. Air pollution has emerged as a major factor as it has now been proven to cause hypertension. As air quality deteriorates, blood pressure levels rise in the community,” according to Dr Reddy. A strong family history of hypertension also predisposes a young adult to premature hypertension. “Gene-environmental interactions play a strong role. If either or both parents have had hypertension in youth or middle age, the risk goes up in their offspring. There is also the phenomenon of ‘anticipation’ in such cases, where the children manifest hypertension at an age earlier than the parents. Adopting healthy living habits may avert or attenuate this hereditary influence. There are congenital disorders like coarctation of aorta, kidney or adrenal diseases which can lead to hypertension,” explains Dr Reddy.
