“The idea that rising blood pressure is a result of aging is a widely held belief in cardiology, but our findings add to evidence that rising blood pressure may be an avoidable consequence of Western diet and lifestyle rather than aging itself,”

Tribe with no Western dietary influences had no increase in blood pressure with advancing age, while neighboring tribe with modest exposure to Western diet, including processed foods, did have an increase

“This age-related rise in blood pressure begins in early childhood—which suggests that early childhood may be a ‘window of opportunity’ for lifestyle interventions to prevent later rises in blood pressure,” Mueller says.

To put these findings in context, in the U.S. systolic blood pressure rises by about 1.5 mm Hg and 1.9 mm Hg per year among boys and girls, respectively, and 0.6 mm Hg per year among adults.