Body mass index is more strongly associated with hypertension than waist circumference in apparently healthy Japanese men and women.

Obesity is associated with hypertension. However, it is controversial which obesity index, body mass index (BMI) or waist circumference (WC), is more strongly associated with hypertension. We compared the cross-sectional associations of BMI and WC with hypertension. Logistic regressions using hypertension as a dependent variable and age, BMI, WC, fasting plasma glucose, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, smoking status, drinking status, and physical activity as independent variables were performed using data from apparently healthy 1,803 Japanese men aged 49.9 ± 9.0 and 1,150 women aged 49.5 ± 9.0 excluding subjects with a history of cardiovascular disease, or with antidiabetic, antihypertensive and/or antihyperlipidemic medications. The odds ratio [95% confidence interval] of 1 kg/m² increase in BMI and that of 1 cm increase in WC for diagnosing hypertension were 1.23 [1.11-1.36] (p < 0.0001) and 0.99 [0.95-1.02] (p = 0.4) in men and 1.35 [1.16-1.58] (p < 0.0001) and 0.97 [0.91-1.03] (p = 0.4) in women, respectively. Thus, BMI, but not WC, was independently associated with hypertension in apparently healthy Japanese men and women.