Obesity can cause or worsen hypertension in a variety of ways. Having obesity can also make it more difficult to treat hypertension because of other related health conditions. The mechanisms through which obesity causes or worsens hypertension include:
Obesity and overweight are a serious health problem that is increasing worldwide. Obesity is associated with a shorter life expectancy and a significant increase in mortality. Stress, inadequate sleep, intake of alcohol, inactivity, unhealthy diet, age, and genetics are some of the risk factors for obesity. Diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, and atherosclerosis are obesity-related complications (58).
Changes in the function of the sympathetic nervous system, part of the autonomic nervous system in charge of the fight-or-flight response; alterations in the structure and function of the kidneys, many people who have obesity carry a higher proportion of visceral fat. Visceral fat surrounds and puts pressure on the abdominal organs and more stress on the cardiovascular system. This extra pressure often leads to resistant hypertension — uncontrolled blood pressure, according to 2015 research (John E. Hall, Jussara M. do Carmo, Alexandre A. da Silva, Zhen Wang, Michael E. Hall) , despite using three or more blood pressure medications.
A 2017 review (Monica T. J. Schütten, Alfons J. H. M. Houben, Peter W. De Leeuw, and Coen D. A. Stehouwer) suggests that one of the contributors to high blood pressure is the Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. The RAAS helps to regulate blood volume and pressure across the whole body. When the RAAS system is not acting properly, blood pressure can remain elevated for a long time. Another 2017 review (Leggio, M., Lombardi, M., Caldarone, E. Et al) shows that obesity causes the levels of all the hormones in the RAAS to rise. This imbalance leads to high blood pressure.
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