Comparative Random Blood Glucose and Blood Pressure Levels of People in Urban and Rural Areas of Southern Kaduna, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

Diabetes mellitus and hypertension are interrelated diseases that strongly predispose an individual to artherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
The prevalence of Diabetes mellitus and hypertension is rising in Nigeria and their complications present an immense public health burden.
The study determined and compared the random blood glucose and blood pressure levels of people living in the urban and rural areas of Southern Kaduna.
A total of 1500 volunteers that were 18 years of age and above were sampled. One thousand (1000) were from ten urban settlements in Southern Kaduna while five hundred (500) volunteers were from ten rural villages in Southern Kaduna.

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The blood glucose levels were measured using advocate blood glucose monitoring system, the blood pressure levels were measured using advocate automatic memory blood pressure monitor model, weight of individuals were measured using Camry mechanical scale and heights were measured using a graduated rod.
There was significant difference in mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and random blood glucose (RBG) levels in relation to urban settlements compared to rural settlements, pensioners compared to other occupations,
the elderly compared to other age groups, those who drink alcohol and smoke compared to those who do not drink alcohol nor smoke, and the obese individuals compared to other BMI groups, but the difference in mean SBP, DBP and RBG was not significant (p> 0.05) in relation to gender.
Hypertension was more prevalent in male (18.6%) compared to female (17.1%); in urban residents (26.3%) compared to rural residents (0.6%); in pensioners (75.0%) compared to other occupations; in elderly (62.5%) compared to the young (14.1%);

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INTRODUCTION

The final products of carbohydrate digestion in the alimentary tract are almost entirely glucose, fructose, and galactose with glucose representing, an average 80 percent of these.
After absorption from the intestinal tract, much of the fructose and almost all the galactose are rapidly converted into glucose in the liver.
Therefore, little fructose and galactose are present in the circulating blood. Glucose thus becomes the final common pathway for the transport of almost all carbohydrates to the tissue cells (Guyton and Hall,2006 )
Glucose is a small, polar and, thus, water- soluble monosaccharide. Its importance greatly out- weighs its size for two reasons- the first is that, it has multiple metabolic paths and secondly, neurons have absolute nutritional requirement for a continuous supply of it; in its absence they die.
Thus homoeostatic regulation of the concentration of extracellular fluid glucose is vital. It is achieved primarily by the actions of the hormones secreted by the pancreas – insulin and glucagon .
Plasma glucose concentration is a function of the rate of glucose entering the circulation (glucose appearance) balanced by the rate of glucose removal from the circulation (glucose disappearance).
Circulating glucose is derived from three sources: intestinal absorption during the fed state, glycogenolysis – the breakdown of glycogen which is the polymerized storage form glucose.

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