Improving control of high blood pressure among middle-aged Turkish women of low socio-economic status through public health training.

AIM: To assess the effects of health training course aimed at educating middle-aged women of low socio-economic status in Turkey how to better control high blood pressure. METHODS: The intervention study included 400 randomly selected women aged (mean+/-standard deviation) 34.1+/-8.6 years. After their body size and blood pressure were measured, the women were randomly divided into two groups. The intervention group underwent public health training on high blood pressure control and obesity reduction, whereas control group had no training at all. After six months, blood pressure and body size of women in both groups were measured again. RESULTS: Overall, the initial high blood pressure and obesity ratio in the intervention and control group were 20.0% and 31.7%, respectively. After 6 months of the intervention program, the number of women within the optimal weight range significantly increased in the intervention group compared with control group (p=0.009). After the intervention program, the number of women with normal weight and normal blood pressure in the intervention group significantly increased (weight: 130 women before vs 150 after, p=0.001; blood pressure: 160 women before vs 173 after, p<0.001). After the intervention, the percentage of meals consisting of fried food in the intervention group was lower by 31.9%, and by 5.0% in the control group. After the intervention the percentage of boiled food increased by 15.7% in the intervention group, compared with no change in the control group. The consumption of food high in salt decreased by 5.5% in the control and by 72.2% in the intervention group. Similarly, the percentage of women who exercised almost doubled in the intervention group, whereas there was no change in the control group. CONCLUSION: The changes in the lifestyle significantly reduced hypertension and obesity ratio among women. The public health center can provide initial health training support as a part of the broader public health management program, aimed at helping people tackle health problems.