Rising cases of hypertension among indigenous populations of Northeast India: an overview

A sizable number of people with hypertension live in low- and middle-income countries that lack adequate health resources and where awareness of hypertension is limited, resulting in poor blood pressure control. This review paper aims to investigate the association between ethnicity and the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, such as hypertension, among the indigenous populations of northeast India. Thirty-one articles were retrieved from PubMed, NCBI, and Google Scholar. These articles focus on hypertension cases across twenty-four different indigenous populations in all eight states of northeast India, including North Bengal. The participants included adults of both sexes. In some instances, systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings were reported for each population, along with nutritional status assessed through body mass index (BMI). Results indicate that the Mizo exhibit a high prevalence of systolic diastolic hypertension (SDH) in both males (57%) and females (43%), followed by the Ao Naga (45% Male and 41% Female). A notably high prevalence of isolated diastolic hypertension (IDH) is observed among the Angami Naga (67% Rural and 68% Urban). However, concerning BMI, a low percentage of Angami Naga (14% Rural and 20% Urban) are found to be obese. In most indigenous populations, males are more susceptible to developing vulnerabilities related to CVD risk factors than their female counterparts. To gain a comprehensive understanding, this prevalence must be viewed from an evolutionary perspective, taking into account physiological mechanisms and nutritional transitions among the indigenous populations of northeast India.