Alcohol and HIV: a study among sexually active adults in rural southwest Uganda

Alcohol consumption in developing countries increases the risk of HIV infection, possibly explaining the lower prevalence of HIV infection among Muslims, a study has found.

Researchers from the Medical Research Council Programme on AIDS in Uganda questioned 2,374 sexually active adults from 15 villages in the southwest of the country. After being kept under epidemiological surveillance for eight years, the participants were asked about their history of alcohol consumption and the sale of alcohol in their households. After informed consent, they were tested for HIV/AIDS.

The study showed that HIV prevalence was higher among adults who consumed alcohol than those who never drank. Non-Muslims were 14 times more likely to have used alcohol, and twice as likely to be HIV -positive.

Professor James Whitworth, one of the researchers involved in the study, told PlusNews that the relationship between religion, HIV prevalence and alcohol was an "intriguing finding". In other studies, the link between religion and HIV prevalence had been related to male circumcision, and few studies have explored the effect of alcohol. Future studies of HIV infection among Muslims needed to investigate this further,
he said.

Public health campaigns need to stress the relationship between HIV/AIDS and alcohol, the study noted.

"In Uganda, I''ve seen one or two posters that depict a man sitting in a bar drinking and health-related warnings about the dangers of HIV/AIDS,"
said Whitworth. He suggested that bar owners should play a role by selling condoms at bars.

The main method for HIV transmission in sub-Saharan Africa is heterosexual contact. Drinking alcohol can increase the risk of HIV infection by reducing the chances of condom use, increasing sexual activity and weakening personal control, the study suggested.