Higher Education Lowers Blood Pressure, New Research Shows

Education isn't just good for your brain, it may also be good for your heart. This according to a new study from researchers at Brown University looking at data from the so-called Framingham Offspring Study.

The longitudinal study looked at nearly 4,000 participants at seven different physical examinations over the course of 30 years. Using what the researchers describe as "mixed linear models," they recorded (and then calculated) average systolic blood pressure (SBP) among the participants. SBP is the top number in a blood pressure reading and is a measure of the pressure in the arteries when the heart beats. (The bottom number is a measure of one's diastolic blood pressure, or the pressure in the arteries between heart beats.) According to the Mayo Clinic, isolated systolic hypertension can lead to stroke, heart disease, chronic kidney disease and even dementia.

Researchers grouped their study participants into three groups: those who'd had fewer than 12 years of education (meaning high school or less), those who'd had between 13 and 16 years of education, and those with 17 or more years of school under their belts, which researchers said approximated "more than an undergraduate college degree."

Crunching the numbers, researchers concluded that the effects of education on blood pressure may be higher in females. After adjusting for age, they found that female participants with fewer than 12 years of education had 2.69 mmHg (millimeters of mercury) higher blood pressure than those who'd been in school for at least 17 years.

"This suggests that low education may have a long-term impact on changes over time in blood pressure in females," the study's authors concluded.

Though the researchers took pains to separate out "antecedent effects of education" and other related factors in an effort to zero in specifically on the potential long-term effects of education on blood pressure, they steered clear of offering any sweeping assessments of how, exactly, education might have that impact.

In speaking with the BBC, Natasha Stewart, a senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation said that while the findings did indicate a real link, "...the study only showed a small blood pressure drop among women and an insignificant decrease among men."

Comments

[Karlclair]

04:31 PM on 03/05/2011

Some proven ways to lower BP, myocardial infarction, hypovolemic shock, anaphylactic shock, and most effective death. ; )

[socialtalker]

05:41 PM on 03/22/2011

not funny

[SoufiLouis]

08:02 PM on 03/04/2011

its probably because they are less stressed out about finding a job and paying the bills.

[VirgoLinnea]

10:35 PM on 03/02/2011

Correlation does not imply causation here? Or, if one is higher educated, one might be more likely to make a higher income and thus be able to eat a healthier diet and have the means to workout regularly. Or maybe the higher educated people have been better educated on these aspects of having a healthier lifestyle and are more likely to partake in it due to that education. Or they are more likely to have jobs that offer decent healthcare benefits.

[Waterphoneman]

11:52 AM on 03/02/2011

Key word in this report is "may". I have a Masters degree and recently my blood pressure went to 281/114.

[FPhoebe]

11:40 PM on 03/01/2011

This final semester of undergrad is definitely NOT helping to keep my blood pressure at normal levels.

[MarkieBee007]

05:20 PM on 03/01/2011

no if they did away with finals week my blood pressure would really fall...to levels not seen since cerveza coma week in Cancun

[paulwl]

10:19 AM on 03/01/2011

LOL 2X as much!!! I betcha they did not have African Americans like me WHO WORK IN HIGHER EDUCATION! After 33 years of work with some of the most narrow, self-centered blow-hardest egos on the planet...COLLEGE STUDENTS are a bigger headache than ever before! Although my associates have gotten mellow with time, since they come around to my proven way of working with today's students, our wards of today think the sun rises and sets on their butts!! Something is not complete about this study!!!!

[corwin]

08:34 AM on 03/01/2011

And makes your penis bigger?

[Tom Hendricks]

11:01 PM on 02/28/2011

We need to go beyond pop psychology. Here are new ideas to consider:

New ideas suggest that breast feeding may be the key to both overweight and underweight problems. It may set up a blood pressure pattern for life.

The idea is that the lack of at least one year of breast feeding for infants is causing both overweight and underweight problems across the world.

Weaning sets up a food in and waste out pattern - probably in the ENS, Enteric Nervous System, that subconsciously programs us for our lives.

If there is not enough breast milk before that weaning period - the infant will be 'hungry' from then on. He will move toward food and become overweight. The overriding emotion is Anger.

If the weaning is too soon such that the child's digestion system can't handle the new non-breast milk, solids, then the child will always be 'too full' (of food he can't yet digest) from then on. He will move away from food and become underweight. The overriding emotion is Fear.
This should be easy to test. Those with weight problems should be infants that were NOT breast fed for one year.

[ashelikescake]

09:56 PM on 02/28/2011

What a horribly misleading headline. The study shows a correlation between being highly educated and having lower blood pressure, NOT that higher ed lowers blood pressure. There's a huge difference.

[nyscribbler]

11:01 AM on 03/01/2011

Thank you for a bit of real scientific knowledge here. It's quite obvious that the more highly educated are more aware of what a healthy lifestyle consists. Also, if you are smarter you get more education and presumably know how to care for your health better too. Correlation and causation are two different animals.

[Mondayboy]

04:14 PM on 02/28/2011

Banana also lowers blood pressure and it way cheaper than higher education.

[nyscribbler]

11:03 AM on 03/01/2011

On the other hand if you drink no water your blood pressure will go way way down- to zero. It's the new health craze.

[Salanry]

03:19 PM on 02/28/2011

Hmmm... I am very curious about their methodology for this study. I don't doubt there is a correlation between higher education and health but I do not see it as a cause and effect relationship as this article contends.
Those who have more schooling and education typically have more advantages in obtaining employment that will include health care. Those with greater access to health care typically have healthier lifestyles and better overall health/life span.
They usually also receive this health care at a reduced cost, or sometimes no out of pocket expense. There is no threat of losing your home or going bankrupt due to illness. That alleviates a lot of stress that has been proved to be detrimental to one’s health and well being.
I am sure that higher education offers some benefits to students in terms of educating them about healthier diets and exercise, but those who can take advantage of these benefits typically live more privileged lifestyles. Higher levels of education typically mean better pay, better retirement, and more time for extracurricular activities. Having a better diet and more time to exercise are privileges that not everyone can afford to $7 an hour.