IT IS WIDELY accepted that hypertension
is more common among the obese than
among the lean and that a positive relationship
exists between the level of blood pressure
and the degree of obesity. The evidence upon
which these common beliefs are based comes
largely from numerous surveys that are fully
discussed in standard books on blood pressure.1
2 However, there are several reasons
why the conclusion that obesity and hypertension
are related should not be accepted
too readily.