Objective: To investigate the joint effect of abdominal obesity in childhood and adulthood on adult hypertension. Methods: Based on the data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS, 1993-2011), a total of 1 431 subjects who were investigated in both childhood (6 to17 years old) and young adulthood (18 to 35 years old) were selected for the analysis. According to waist circumference (WC) status (normal WC or abdominal obesity) in childhood and adulthood, all subjects were categorized into 4 groups. The multinomial logistic regression model was used to analyze the joint effect of abdominal obesity in childhood and adulthood on adult hypertension and pre-hypertension. Results: Compared to the subjects (n=1 057) who had normal WC in both childhood and adulthood, subjects with abdominal obesity in childhood but with normal WC (n=45) in adulthood didn′t have significantly increased risk of hypertension (OR=1.52, 95%CI: 0.19-12.06). In contrast, those who had normal WC in childhood and abdominal obesity in adulthood (n=289) had increased risk of hypertension (OR=6.48, 95%CI: 3.60-11.66). In addition, subjects with persistent abdominal obesity from childhood to adulthood (n=40) had the highest risk of hypertension (OR=15.98, 95%CI: 5.39-47.35). There was a similar trend for the association of abdominal obesity in childhood and adulthood with adult pre-hypertension, with the corresponding OR (95%CI) of 1.28 (0.66-2.49), 2.90 (2.17-3.89) and 3.49 (1.65-7.40), respectively. Conclusion The joint effect of abdominal obesity in childhood and adulthood increased the risk of adult hypertension and pre-hypertension. There was no statistical significance for subjects who had abdominal obesity in childhood but had normal WC in adulthood when compared to those with normal WC in both childhood and adulthood.