There are countless scientific studies that demonstrate that poor arterial health promotes cognitive decline in adults. But young people are not immune either, if Finnish work from the universities of Jyväskylä and Eastern Finland is to be believed.
Researchers have, in fact, discovered that higher blood pressure is associated with poorer cognitive functions in adolescence.
Blood pressure impacts teens’ brain health
To determine the impact of hypertension on the adolescent brain, the team used data from a study called PANIC which followed the physical activity and nutrition of children for eight years. A total of 116 adolescents (45 girls and 71 boys) participated and their average age was 15.9 years. Their cardiac health, including blood pressure and pulse wave, was assessed. They also took tests to gauge their cognitive skills (working memory, learning capacity and attention).
Analysis of the data collected revealed that adolescents with higher blood pressure had poorer attention and learning skills as well as overall cognition than other children. A higher pulse wave speed, an indicator of arterial stiffness, was – in turn – associated with poorer working memory.
Heart problems did not have quite the same impact depending on the sex of the adolescent. “Girls with higher blood pressure demonstrated a negative association with a wider range of cognitive functions than boys. Conversely, boys with higher arterial stiffness displayed better attention span and better memory work”add the authors in their press release.
Hypertension must be prevented early
“Our findings highlight the importance of preventing high blood pressure and arterial stiffness to promote cognitive and brain health in young people. However, we observed conflicting associations”explains doctoral student Petri Jalanko who worked on this study presented in the journal Physiological Reports.
If this research gives “an overview of how blood pressure and arterial stiffness relate to cognitive function” at a young age, the team believes further trials are needed to establish a definitive cause-and-effect relationship between arterial health and brain health during adolescence. It therefore calls for the organization of other studies.
