NEW YORK (Reuters Health) — A man’s risk of developing high blood pressure rises along with his weight, even when it’s within normal range, according to a new study.In a study of more than 13,000 male doctors, researchers found that the higher a man’s body mass index (BMI) was at the outset, the higher his risk of developing high blood pressure over the next 15 years. This was true even among men who were normal-weight or only mildly overweight.

Dr. Rebecca P. Gelber and colleagues at Harvard Medical School report the findings in the American Journal of Hypertension.

Numerous studies have linked excess pounds to high blood pressure, including ones showing that overweight and obese adults can lower their risk by losing weight.

But the current findings suggest that, across the spectrum of “normal” and overweight, pounds affect blood pressure.

The results are based on data from the Physicians’ Health Study, a project begun in 1982 that has followed more than 22,000 US male doctors. Gelber and her colleagues focused on 13,563 men who were free of high blood pressure at the study’s start.

Each year, the study participants had various health and lifestyle factors measured, including their BMI, a measurement of weight in relation to height.

A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered normal, while 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight and 30 or higher obese.

Gelber’s team found that compared with men whose initial BMI was less than 22.4, those who fell between 22.4 and 23.6 were 20 percent more likely to develop high blood pressure over the next 15 to 20 years.

The risk continued to climb along with the men’s BMI, with overweight and obese men being 85 percent more likely than the thinnest study participants to develop high blood pressure.

The link between weight and blood pressure persisted when the researchers considered other factors, like age, smoking, diabetes and exercise habits.

The findings, according to Gelber’s team, highlight the importance of not only shedding excess weight, but of limiting weight gain throughout adulthood as well.

This could have “considerable benefits,” they note, for adults’ risk of high blood pressure and its complications, including heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.