Lipid patterns, alcohol intake and BMI of adult Nigerians in a sub-urban slum in Enugu, Nigeria

INTRODUCTION: Demonstration of cardiovascular disease (CVD) markers in healthy subjects with normal blood chemistry tests underscores the need to study social determinants of risk factors to aid primary prevention worldwide; particularly in slums which harbor nearly 80% of rural to urban migrants in the epidemiologically transiting Africa where CVDs were previously unknown. The objective of this study was to assess lipids in relationship to alcohol consumption and BMI in a Nigerian slum. METHODS: Cross sectional community based prevalent study involving 191 apparently healthy inhabitants aged 18- 85 years recruited by convenient sampling. Heights, weights and BMIs were measured/ calculated, venous blood samples collected and lipid analysis done procedurally. Excel 13 and SPSS statistical soft ware were used for analysis and chart representation. RESULTS: Their mean parameters were: Age (43.87 ± 1.62 years), triglycerides (TG; 1.20 ± 0.08mmol/L), total Cholesterol (TC; 4.54 ± 1.70mmol/L), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC; 3.69 ± 1.69mmol/L), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC; 0.61 ± 0.24mmol/L), RPI (7.12 ± 5.24), body mass index (BMI; 25.08 ± 5.18Kg/M2). TG and HDLC values were lowest in obese non alcohol drinkers while all other lipid parameters increased with BMI in both drinkers and non drinkers. Low HDLC prevalence was lowest in obese alcohol drinkers and highest (100%) in their non drinking counterparts. Having favourable HDLC was highest in daily alcohol consumers. No weekly drinker (0%) had favourable HDLC. CONCLUSION: Ignorance, poor nutritional and health education may be major factors in the strategic challenge posed by the emergence of non communicable diseases in Africans.