Blood pressure studies in two Pacific populations with varying degrees of modernisation

The prevalence of hypertension and the change in blood pressure with age were investigated in a Polynesian population (Tuvalu), and in a Micronesian population (Nauru) in the South Pacific region. Hypertension was present in 27.2 percent of the Nauruans and 11.1 percent of the Tuvaluans. Both population groups also showed a rise in mean blood pressure with increasing age--a phenomenon apparently absent in traditional-living populations of the world but present in western societies.