Bm 20

SBP and DBP were measured in a sitting position for participants after five minutes of rest (BM 20, Beurer, Germany). This evaluation was repeated two times. The mean of evaluations was used for interpretation. Participants were classified into normal (SBP < 120 mmHg and DBP < 80 mmHg), elevated BP (SBP 120 to 129 mmHg or DBP 80 to 84 mmHg), stage I hypertension (SBP 130 to 139 mmHg or DBP 85 to 89 mmHg), and stage II hypertension (SBP ≥ 140 mmHg or DBP ≥ 90 mmHg) based on SBP and DBP examination [25 ]. Based on standard methods, height and weight were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was computed based on: weight (kg) / height (m²) [23 ].
The Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) was used to evaluate the participants’ physical activity levels. The data were converted to the metabolic equivalent of tasks (METs)-minutes per week for physical activity domains based on the GPAQ Instrument [23 ]. The details of physical activity calculation based on METs have been published in a previous study [26 (link)].

Anthropometric measurements in this study included height (evaluated using a standard height ruler) and weight (measured in an upright position by a calibrated scale). Blood pressure of patients was measured in sitting position by digital devices (BM 20, Beurer, Germany) after 5 minutes of rest. This assessment was repeated two more times, each after 5 minutes of rest. The average of second and third assessments was used for interpretation.
Samples of venous blood were collected from eligible individuals following 12 hours of fasting. Using the autoanalyzer (Cobas C311 Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan), serum was assessed for levels of fasting plasma glucose (FPG), HbA1c, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), total cholesterol, and triglycerides (TG). Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) was calculated through Friedwald formula if the TG level was less than 400 mg/dL.[17 (link)] All the laboratory samples were transferred to a central laboratory to be assessed by one autoanalyzer to prevent inter-laboratory comparisons bias.