IMPACT OF MIGRATION, ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIOECONOMIC CONDITIONS ON BLOOD-PRESSURE OF SIKHS

This study documents the impact of migration, environment and caste on the blood pressure of Sikhs living in the UK and their peers in the n ative Punjab state of India. A sample of 449 adult Sikhs, males and fe males, were studied in the Punjab state, and in Southall, in the Ealin g borough of London and Handsworth in Birmingham in the UK. There is m inor variation in the blood pressure of members of various castes amon g the Sikhs living in the Punjab. The pattern in blood pressure broadl y corresponds with the economic status of the individuals, with well-o ff groups showing higher blood pressure compared to the poorer groups. The blood pressure of migrants, though higher than that of their sede nte peers, is not significantly so. Age at arrival in the UK and the l ength of exposure to the new environment were generally not significan tly related to variation in blood pressure. There seems to be a secula r shift in the blood pressure values of the native Punjabi Sikhs compa red to earlier studies, possibly because of the rise in civic disturba nces and social unrest in the Punjab during recent years.