Abstract 16076: Elevated Body Mass Index and Blood Pressure Among Male High-School American Style Football Athletes

Abstract

Introduction: The impact of American Style Football (ASF) participation on cardiovascular health is unclear. Early-life weight gain among ASF athletes is common and is associated with risk of multiple later-life health afflictions. Despite the popularity of ASF participation among the youth, a rigorous comparison of the cardiovascular health profiles between ASF and non-ASF athletes at the high-school level has not been undertaken. We performed an observational cross-sectional study comparing the body mass index and blood pressures of ASF and non-ASF high-school athletes. Methods: Between October 2012 to November 2018 we performed voluntary cardiac screens including height, weight and blood pressure among predominantly high-school students. Inclusion criteria included the following: male sex; >10 hours of exercise per week; single-sport athlete; age >14 years old. Of the 6973 young individuals who underwent screening, 508 athletes were included in the analyzed data. Results: ASF athletes represented 18% of all high-school athletes. The mean age of ASF and non-ASF athletes was 18.5 and 18.0 years, respectively. BMI was higher in ASF athletes compared to non-ASF participating athletes (26.9 vs 21.2 p<0.0001). There was a higher prevalence of class I and class II obesity among ASF athletes (class I obesity: 15% vs 1%; class II obesity: 10% vs 1%, p<0.0001 for each). ASF athletes had an increased systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) compared to non-ASF participating athletes (SBP: 121 vs 114 p<0.0001; DBP: 73 vs 70 p=0.0028). Among all athletes, there was a positive correlation between blood pressure and BMI (SBP: R=0.4149, DBP: R=0.2076, p<0.0001 for each). Conclusions: High-school athletes that participate in ASF have a higher BMI, prevalence of obesity and blood pressure compared to their non-ASF counterparts. It is important to screen young ASF athletes for obesity and hypertension in order to optimize cardiovascular health at an early age.