MONDAY, Nov. 20, 2023 (HealthDay News) — From 1999 to 2020, there was an increase in hypertension among low-income middle-aged adults, while higher-income adults had increases in diabetes and obesity, according to a study published online Nov. 21 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Michael Liu, M.Phil., from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, and colleagues conducted a serial cross-sectional study to assess trends in the prevalence, treatment, and control of cardiovascular risk factors among 20,761 low- and higher-income middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64 years).

The researchers found that between 1999 and March 2020, the prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, and cigarette use was consistently higher among low-income adults. During the study period, there was an increase in hypertension among low-income adults (37.2 to 44.7 percent), but no changes were seen in diabetes or obesity. No change in hypertension was seen among higher-income adults, but they had increases in diabetes (7.8 to 14.9 percent) and obesity (33.0 to 44.0 percent). Among low-income adults, cigarette use was high and did not change (33.2 to 33.9 percent); use decreased among higher-income adults (18.6 to 11.5 percent). The groups had no change in treatment and control rates for hypertension (>80 percent), while an improvement in diabetes treatment rates was seen among higher-income adults (58.4 to 77.4 percent).

“Targeted public health and policy initiatives to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors, particularly among low-income communities, are urgently needed to address the ongoing increase in cardiovascular mortality among middle-aged adults,” the authors write.

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