Effects of wealth and exercise on blood pressure: evidence from Ghana

Abstract

This study determines whether or not the effect of physical exercise on blood pressure is only direct as most studies posit or is also mediated by some socioeconomic factors, including the wealth status of the household. The study used data on 13,784 individuals from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS) and employed two models, namely the multinomial logit and the multiple regression models. The multinomial model was used to determine, while controlling for other variables, the likelihood of individuals being hypertensive or prehypertensive, given that they exercise. It was found that exercising reduces the likelihood of an individual becoming systolic hypertensive or prehypertensive relative to having a normal blood pressure. The study also found that physical exercise helps reduce the systolic blood pressure of individuals directly. The effect of physical exercise on both systolic and diastolic blood pressure is also found to be mediated by the wealth status of the individual. The wealthy who exercise are found to have their systolic blood pressure fall by 5.786 mmHg higher than the poor. While physical exercise does not directly affect the diastolic blood pressure of an individual, its effect on diastolic blood pressure is mediated by the wealth status of the individual. Just as in the case of systolic blood pressure, wealthy individuals who exercise benefit from a greater fall in their diastolic blood pressure by 2.158 mmHg than the poor who exercise. The study, thus, concluded that while all individuals benefit from exercising, the wealthy in society benefits the most. It is, therefore, recommended that all individuals in the quest to decrease the risk of becoming hypertensive should exercise. This is truer for the wealthy in society.