Hypertension Development by Midlife and the Roles of Premorbid Cognitive Function, Sex, and Their Interaction

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Public Health
• Sociology

Background:

• Early-life cognitive function predicts later-life health outcomes, including hypertension.
• Socioeconomic status influences hypertension risk, with steeper gradients observed in women.
• Sex differences in hypertension development may relate to cognitive function and its interaction with sex.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between early-life cognitive function and later-life hypertension risk.
• To examine if this association differs between men and women.
• To explore the mediating role of socioeconomic status in the cognitive function-hypertension relationship.

Main Methods:

• Utilized accelerated failure time modeling with data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth 1979.
• Assessed cognitive function in participants aged 14-21 years.
• Analyzed hypertension diagnoses by 2015, considering socioeconomic status (youth and adult), education, occupation, and income.

Main Results:

• Each standard deviation increase in youth cognitive function was associated with reduced hypertension risk (acceleration factor: 0.97).
• This protective effect of cognitive function was significantly stronger in women than in men.
• The sex-specific association was partially explained by interactions involving family income.

Conclusions:

• Higher early-life cognitive function is associated with a lower risk of developing hypertension in adulthood, especially for women.
• Socioeconomic factors, particularly income, play a crucial role in mediating these associations.
• Findings suggest potential sex-specific pathways linking early cognition, socioeconomic status, and hypertension development.