Relação entre indicadores antropométricos de adiposidade central, características de estilo de vida e hipertensão arterial em idosos frequentadores de um centro de convivência em Itaqui/RS

Abstract

As people live longer, the prevalence of chronic diseases, such as hypertension, increases. Among the risk factors related to the etiology of this disease, abdominal adiposity and lifestyle characteristics are highlighted. To investigate the relationship between anthropometric indicators of central adiposity, lifestyle characteristics and hypertension in the elderly. Cross-sectional study, conducted with a sample of 82 elderlies who attend regularly to a daycare center in Itaqui city. Socio-demographic information on lifestyle characteristics (smoking, alcohol abuse and physical inactivity) and the occurrence of hypertension were collected. Anthropometric measurements of weight, height and waist circumference were measured, which were then used to calculate conicity index and waist-height. To evaluate the relationship between anthropometric factors of life style and blood pressure, it was used the chi-square test, considering a 5% significance level. Data analysis was performed on Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS, version 18.0). Results: The prevalence of hypertension in the elderlies was 63.4%. Regarding the regular consumption of alcohol, it was observed that 87.8% reported not using alcohol and 97.6% are not declared smokers. Regarding inactivity, 75.6% of the elderlies are considered to be active. Regarding to anthropometric indicators, it was found that most elderlies presented abdominal adiposity up to the conicity index (97.6%), similar results found in the fatness analyzes by waist-height and waist circumference (96.3% and 93.9%, respectively). In this study, there was a statistically significant association between hypertension and increased values of waist circumference. In summary, it was observed most of the elderlies presented high waist circumference, although the conicity index did not show a statistically significant relationship with hypertension, most of the subjects showed high conicity, and none of the life style variables was related to morbidity. It is believed that further research esmight be developed in order to contribute to a better quality of life in the aging period.