
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, January 17, 1994                   TAG: 9401170042
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: CLEARWATER, FLA.                                LENGTH: Short

HEART ASSOCIATION SAYS HYPERTENSION DECREASING

The number of Americans with high blood pressure has dropped to about 50 million, from 63.6 million a decade earlier, the American Heart Association says in its annual statistical report to be published today.

Some of the drop may be due to a refinement in the most recent survey, but much of it is likely due to the adoption of healthier lifestyles, researchers said.

But in a less encouraging note, the association reported that an estimated 2.2 million American children 12-17 smoke cigarettes, and 9 million children under age 5 live with a smoker, raising their risk of asthma and respiratory infections.

The emphasis on smoking statistics in material accompanying the report was prompted by concerns of the group's president, Dr. James H. Moller, a pediatric cardiologist at the University of Minnesota, association officials said.

Smoking by children "puts them at risk for developing cardiovascular disease, the nation's No. 1 killer," Moller said.

"Ultimately, these children may join the ranks of the 417,000 people who die each year of tobacco-related deaths," he said in a statement.

- Associated Press

by CNB