Dr. Falkner Talks to WHYY Radio About Increased Risk of Hypertension in Overweight Children
A new study suggests that kids who experience even modest weight gain can have high blood pressure. In fact, overweight and obese kids are almost three times as likely to have high blood pressure as their normal-weight peers. The study also found that rates of hypertension and pre-hypertension spiked when kids crossed the 85th percentile for their BMI.
In a WHYY Radio interview, Jefferson pediatrician Bonita Falkner, MD, comments on the study, saying "Even overweight children have a heightened risk for some of the consequences of obesity and it warrants more attention to preventing children from becoming overweight."
Learn more by reading "Blood pressure may spike when kids reach 'overweight' threshold."
This story was also picked up by WebMD: "Overweight Kids Risk High Blood Pressure" and CNN.com: "When kids become overweight, blood pressure may spike."
Publication: WHYY Radio
Published: 10/10/2011