High Ethanol Contents of Spirit Drinks in Kibera Slums, Kenya: Implications for Public Health

Overview

Journal Foods

Specialty Biotechnology

Date 2017 Oct 18

PMID 29039800

Citations 2

Authors

Alex O Okaru

Kennedy O Abuga

Isaac O Kibwage

Dirk W Lachenmeier

Affiliations

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Abstract

Cheap licit and artisanal illicit spirit drinks have been associated with numerous outbreaks of alcohol poisoning especially with methanol. This study aimed to evaluate the quality of cheap spirit drinks in Kibera slums in Nairobi County, Kenya. The samples consisted of cheap licit spirits ( = 11) and the artisanal spirit drink, ', ( = 28). The parameters of alcoholic strength and volatile composition were used as indicators of quality and were determined using gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) respectively. The ranges for alcoholic strength were 42.8-85.8% vol and 28.3-56.7% vol for and licit spirit drinks respectively, while the pH ranges were 3.3-4.2 and 4.4-4.8 for and licit spirit drinks respectively. The majority of volatiles were found in artisanal spirits and they included higher alcohols, ethyl esters and carbonyl compounds. The alcoholic strength of all the artisanal spirits (100%) and 91% of the licit spirits was above the 40% vol of standard spirits such as vodka. The high ethanol content of the alcohol products was the only element of public health significance in this study.

Citing Articles

Illicit Alcohol: Public Health Risk of Methanol Poisoning and Policy Mitigation Strategies.

Manning L, Kowalska A Foods. 2021; 10(7).

PMID: 34359495 PMC: 8303512. DOI: 10.3390/foods10071625.

Examining characteristics of recorded and unrecorded alcohol consumers in Kenya.

Mkuu R, Barry A, Montiel Ishino F, Amuta A BMC Public Health. 2018; 18(1):1058.

PMID: 30139353 PMC: 6108107. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-018-5960-1.

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