Trends in Adolescents Obesity and the Association between BMI and Blood Pressure: A Cross-Sectional Study in 714,922 Healthy Teenagers

Seventeen percent of youth in the United States are obese. Obesity has been linked to higher prevalence of hypertension. Past studies were limited by their size and conflicting results. The aim of this study was to analyze trends in adolescents’ obesity between 1998 and 2011 and to evaluate the relationship between blood pressure and body mass index (BMI) in healthy adolescents. All adolescents who underwent a medical exam in the years 1998–2011...