Hypertension in people consuming hard water in Haji samoa goth keti-bundar sindh

ABSTRACT

Objective: The aim of our study was to compare the presence of hypertension in people consuming hard water or fresh water and level of hardness, in individual water resources in Haji Samoa village near Keti Bundar, Sindh, Pakistan. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted in Keti Bundar in September 2014. There are two sources of water supply in the area; rain water / hard water. 340 people were included. People > 18 years of age, living in Keti Bundar for > 5 years were included. People having chronic kidney disease, diabetes, or taking anti-hypertensive drugs/oral calcium supplements were excluded. Demographic features, Body Mass Index [BMI] and blood pressure were recorded. Water sample was checked for hardness. Hardness of > 180 ppm was considered to be very hard. Hypertension was compared between people consuming hard or fresh water. p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Result: Out of 340 people, 80 [23.5%] had hypertension; in people consuming hard water 38 [20%] were hypertensive while 42 [28%] people consuming fresh water were hypertensive. This difference was not found to be statistically significant. While testing the hardness of water resources, the level of hardness was found to be very high, 3 out of 4 reservoirs; which were not suitable for human consumption. Conclusion: We conclude that hypertension is no more common in people taking fresh water than hard water; but the underground well water in area of Keti Bundar has high levels of hardness