The influence of age, sex and obesity on blood pressure levels in a tribal population.

The influence of age, sex, body mass index (BM!) and skin fold thickness at triceps and subscapular regions on blood pressure was investigated among Manzai Mali, an agricultural tribe from Andhra Pradesh. Relatively higher levels of blood pressure are observed in this . transitional tribe compared to the neighbouring traditional tribes which may be attributed to the acculturization process. Manzai Mali women recorded significantly higher mean levels of SBP and DBP than men. The multiple regression analysis indicates that SBP increases significantly along with age, body mass index and triceps skinfold thickness. Also, DBP raises markedly with age. The regression coefficient for sex infers that the variability in DBP is significant between men and women compared to SBP. The regression coefficients of BM! and TSF are although positive for SBP and DBP, the influence is significant for SBP only.