The Effect Of Chronic Heavycheka Drinking On Blood Pressure In Konso Townsouthern Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: “Cheka” is a cereal and vegetable-based fermented beveragewhich isrnconsumed in Southwestern parts of Ethiopia mainly in “Dirashe and Konso”. People ofrnall ages including infants, pregnant and lactating women drink “cheka”. An adult man onrnaverage drinks up to 8 litres of “cheka” per day. “Cheka” due to its high methanol andrnethanol content, has several adverse health effects to consumers. Numerous studies havernestablished an association between chronic alcohol consumption and hypertensionrnindependent of other risk factors such as obesity and smoking. Hypertension is a growingrnpublic health problem in many developing countries including Ethiopia and if leftrnuntreated will become a major risk factor for heart failure, renal failure, stroke and evenrndeath. However, its prevention and control has not been given payable attention.rnMETHODS:Comparative cross-sectional study was conducted among “cheka” drinkersrnto select chronic heavy “cheka” consumer via cluster and systemic sampling technique inrn“Konso Karat” Ethiopia. Trained data collectors administered a pre-tested and structuredrnWHO STEPS questionnaire for data collection. Data were entered and analyzed using thernEPI INFO version 7 and SPSS versions 21 respectively.rnRESULTS: A total of 214 study participants were screened for hypertension of which,rn50.46% were“cheka” drinker and 49.5% were non- drinker. Of the drinker, 53.7% werernmales, 74.1% were married, and 64.8% were protestant. While the two groups wererncomparable in most sociodemographic characteristics, the overall prevalence ofrnhypertension among the chronic heavy “cheka” drinker was 24.07 % (95 % CI: 20.48-rn29.0). The prevalence of hypertension among the non-drinker were 7.54 %. The meanrnarterial blood pressure among chronic heavy “cheka” drinker was significantly higherrnthan that of the non-drinker, by 5.1 mmHg.rnCONCLUSION: There was high prevalence of hypertension among adults in karat townrnwho are long term heavy “cheka” drinkers and this may show a hidden epidemic in thisrnpopulation. Provision of sustainable health education to the community about adverserneffects of long term heavy “cheka” drinking and prevention of hypertension are highlyrnrecommended.rnKey words: Hypertension, “Cheka”, Konso, Ethiopia

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