Influence of nutritional and behavioral risk factors on blood pressure profiles of the selected marine fishers

INTRODUCTION: The marine fisheries sector plays a vital role in providing food, nutrition, employment, and income in India. However, it also exposes fishers to harsh environmental conditions, increasing their risk of non-communicable diseases. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved 550 marine fishers from Ramanathapuram District, Tamil Nadu, India to identify the influence of selected nutritional and behavioral risk factors on blood pressure profiles. RESULTS: Findings revealed that hypertension was more prevalent in older fishers, especially 46 to 55 years of age. Significant association and weak positive correlation were found between hypertension and nutritional risk factors such as body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), with higher BMI (24.74 ± 5.85) and waist circumference (86.64 ± 8.01 cm) found in selected marine fishers with high blood pressure profile. Behavioral factors, including smoking and alcohol consumption, were associated with pre-hypertension and hypertension at the 10% significance level. The regression analysis showed that risk factors such as BMI (B value = 0.474, 0.438), WHtR (B value = 68.414, 45.496), habit of skipping meals (B value = 7.142, 3.759), type of cooking oil used (B value = 1.610, 1.626), habit of consuming street foods (B value = 5.611, 1.348), had significant positive association with both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. CONCLUSIONS: There is an urgent need for tailored and targeted health interventions to modify these risk factors which could potentially reduce high blood pressure profiles and improve overall health outcomes among marine fishers.