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  • Brief Communication
  • Special Issue: Current evidence and perspectives for hypertension management in Asia
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Relationship between lifestyle habits and blood pressure in Japanese high school students: a student-driven exploratory survey

Hypertension Research volume 48, pages 3124–3129 (2025) Cite this article

A Comment to this article was published on 18 December 2025

Abstract

This cross-sectional observational study investigates the relationship between lifestyle habits and blood pressure in 244 Japanese high school students from Kogakukan High School. The mean blood pressure was 119.5 ± 11.3/71.3 ± 9.5 mmHg, with 9% of participants meeting the criteria for hypertension (≥ 140/85 mmHg). Hypertensive students had a shorter sleep duration than non-hypertensive students (P = 0.050). Multivariate analysis revealed that systolic blood pressure was significantly associated with male sex (β = −0.274, P < 0.001) and higher body mass index (β = 0.261, P < 0.001). Diastolic blood pressure was significantly influenced by female sex (β = 0.166, P < 0.001) and sugar intake (β = 0.152, P = 0.028). No significant associations were found with salt score, caffeine consumption, or aerobic exercise. These findings highlight the influence of sex, body mass index, dietary sugar, and sleep duration on adolescent blood pressure regulation, emphasizing the need for early lifestyle interventions to mitigate hypertension risk.

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Relationship between Lifestyle and Blood Pressure Levels in Japanese High School Students. Hypertensive students had shorter sleep durations; systolic blood pressure levels were associated with BMI and male sex, and diastolic blood pressure levels were linked to sugar intake and female sex. BMI, body mass index; HT, hypertension

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Acknowledgements

We would like to express our gratitude to the students and parents of the KOUGAKUKAN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL for their cooperation with this project. We also thank Mr. Eiki Hattri for his efforts in organizing the students and conducting this research.

collaborated with Kogakukan-student-investigators

:Haruka Sakamoto6, Risa Shimada6, Natsumi Iwanaga6, Kotomi Teruya6 and Saku Nakamura6

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Saga University, Saga, Japan

    Aya Shiraki, Atsushi Tanaka & Koichi Node

  2. Department of Health and Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, Hiroshima Shudo University, Hiroshima, Japan

    Mari Ishida

  3. Department of Clinical Laboratory, NHO Kyushu Medical Center, Fukuoka, Japan

    Kimika Arakawa

  4. Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan

    Ako Fukami

  5. Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, International University of Health and Welfare, Fukuoka, Japan

    Takuya Kishi

  6. Kogakukan High School, Saga, Japan

    Haruka Sakamoto, Risa Shimada, Natsumi Iwanaga, Kotomi Teruya & Saku Nakamura

Authors
  1. Aya Shiraki
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  2. Atsushi Tanaka
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collaborated with Kogakukan-student-investigators

  • Haruka Sakamoto
  • , Risa Shimada
  • , Natsumi Iwanaga
  • , Kotomi Teruya
  •  & Saku Nakamura

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Correspondence to Aya Shiraki.

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Shiraki, A., Tanaka, A., Ishida, M. et al. Relationship between lifestyle habits and blood pressure in Japanese high school students: a student-driven exploratory survey. Hypertens Res 48, 3124–3129 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41440-025-02381-y

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