Influences of body mass index and physical activity on hypertension and stroke in Korean adult males: 10-year longitudinal study.

Purpose: Hypertension and stroke have been major causes of increased mortality and social and economic burden in Korea. Although physical activity is one of the critical factors for managing adult diseases, studies on the long-term effects are rarely discussed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to elucidate the role of physical activity in hypertension and stroke via a 10-year longitudinal study.

Methods: Routinely performed health screening results of 5,624,503 Korean men between ages 20 to 70 obtained from the National Health Insurance Service (2002-2013) were assessed for this study. Data of subjects who met the initial criteria were divided into three groups based on their BMI: normal weight (18.5 to <25.0 kg/m2), overweight (25.0 to <30.0 kg/m2), and obese (≥30.0 kg/ m2) groups. The results were further sub-divided by physical activity frequencies (days/ week). The disease codes for hypertension and stroke were provided by the National Health Insurance Service for the adjusted relative risks (RR) assessment with the Cox proportional hazard model.

Results: Significant RRs of hypertension and stroke were shown in the overweight moderately active group (3 - 4 days/week). In addition, significant RR of hypertension was shown in the normal weight moderately active group. No significance was seen in the obese group in all physical activity frequencies.

Conclusion: Regularly performed moderate amount of physical activity may be beneficial in reducing the risk for hypertension and stroke. However, the effects of excessive body weight may override the positive effects of physical activity on the occurrence of hypertension and stroke.