Reasons for High Blood Pressure in Young Adults

Medical professionals classify high blood pressure as either primary or secondary hypertension. When the causes of increased blood pressure are unknown, doctors label the disease as primary. Secondary hypertension has identifiable and specific causes. Blood pressure readings for teens are labeled as a percentage compared to the same age group, so teens whose blood pressure readings are in the 90th percentile and above are diagnosed with prehypertension. Many teens develop hypertension, but they are not medically diagnosed until years later when other health concerns are addressed, according to the American Heart Association.

Progression to Hypertension

• Little study has been done on the number of young adults who are diagnosed with prehypertension and the progression to a diagnosis of high blood pressure, but researchers at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia established a clear link in a study reported in 2008 using data from the National Childhood Blood Pressure database. Their results showed a clear link between prehypertension diagnosis and the progression to hypertension in 14 percent of males and 12 percent of females.

Heart Abnormalities

• Heart abnormalities, including aorta damage and defects in the smaller arteries, contribute to high blood pressure in young adults, according to the Nemours Center for Children's Health Media (a nonprofit health organization that focuses on children's health and well-being). Little direct statistical research has been done to establish the exact numbers of teens with high blood pressure and heart abnormalities. In fact, medical studies dealing with heart abnormalities generally assume that the causes are genetic. A scientific study funded by the American Heart Association in 2007 supported this basic assumption and concluded that the estimates of affected individuals have "...been significantly underestimated in the past."

Obesity

• Obesity is the major cause of teen hypertension. "Nation At Risk," a 2008 report sponsored by the American Heart Association, labeled nearly 17 percent of all males ages 12 to 19 as overweight. Nearly 16 percent of young adult females of the same age weighed more than the healthy target weight. Hispanic teens, as a group, had the highest obesity rate, with 19.9 percent registering in the obese category after evaluation of body mass measurements. Obesity due to large portions of food high in sodium and fat, as well as a lack of physical activity, is directly linked to high teen blood pressure, according to the report.

Drug Use

• Legal and illegal drugs can lead to hypertension in young people. Use of drugs such as cocaine, steroids and amphetamines, increases the probability of sustained levels of high blood pressure, according to Nemours Center for Children's Health Media. Nemours also notes that prescribed drugs, including birth control drugs for females, may be a factor in raising the blood pressure level for young females.

Smoking

• While tobacco is classified as a drug by health authorities, the American Heart Association labels the link between teen hypertension and smoking as a separate risk category. Smoking, or the use of tobacco, in any form increases blood pressure. The AHA found that nearly 4,000 teens each day sampled cigarettes in 2007, adding to the estimated 800,000 new young smokers the American Lung Association recorded for that year.