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A new data brief from the National Center for Health Statistics shows that hypertension remained more prevalent among some groups than others in 2015-2016, but one worrisome bit of data in the report could just be statistical noise.
Overall, 29% of adults had hypertension, with men slightly more likely than women (30.2% vs 27.7%) to have the condition, as shown in data from the most recent round of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
Like other conditions that are affected by diet and exercise, the prevalence increases with age. While 7.5% of adults under 40 have hypertension, it affects more than two thirds of those 60 and older. Interestingly, the occurrence of hypertension flips with age. It's less likely to affect younger women than men, but women outpace men by some eight percentage points in those age 60 and above.
In addition, hypertension was a particular problem for African Americans. While more than 40% of African Americans had hypertension, among Hispanics, whites and Asians, the rates ranged from 25% to 28%.
Among those who have hypertension, around half have it under control, a huge improvement over the past two decades. In 1999, only 31% of those with hypertension had it controlled, a number that rose steadily until 2009, where it plateaued.
The most recent NHANES data showed a slight decrease in the rate of controlled hypertension from a high of 53.9% two years prior to 48.3% in the most recent round. That decrease, however, was not statistically significant, and thus could simply reflect random variation.