Predictors of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and dyslipidemia of men living in a periurban community in Ghana

Abstract

Aims and Objective: Unhealthy lifestyles influence the incidence of diet-related noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension. This study examined the effects of some lifestyles and their effects on blood pressure (BP) and cholesterol of men. Materials and Methods: The WHO stepwise questionnaires were used to collect data on 207 men aged ≥18 years living in a periurban community in Ghana. Dietary, anthropometric, clinical, and biochemical data were collected. Results and Analyses: About 24.6% of the subjects were overweight with body mass index ≥25 kg/m 2 , 26.1% were hypertensive with systolic BP >140 mmHg, 8.7% were diagnosed with hypercholesterolemia with total cholesterol >5.18 mmol/L, and 34.8% of the participants had dyslipidemic with blood "low-density lipoprotein" >2.29 mmol/L. Binary logistic regression revealed that tobacco smokers and overweight men were about 4 times (odds ratio [OR]: 3.68, P < 0.01) and more than twice (OR: 2.46, P < 0.01) likely to suffer from hypertension, respectively. Men with fat intake ≥60% of nutrient adequacy ratio were about 3 times more likely to suffer from hypercholesterolemia (OR: 2.72, P < 0.05). Tobacco users and overweight men were both about 3 times (OR: 2.65, P = 0.02) more likely to be dyslipidemic. Conclusion: These results suggest that tobacco use, overweight, and high intake of dietary fat were associated with high risk of cardiovascular events among men in the study group.