Herbal Medicine is used to describe products made from plants that are used to treat diseases and maintain health.
It is important to know that a lot of drugs are derived from plants in which the active ingredients are extracted and made into drugs following certain regulations and standards.
Examples of such drugs are morphine from the Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum).
Aspirin (salicylic acid) from Salix alba (white willow).
In Nigeria however, herbal medicine is a mixture of unregulated and regulated plant-derived medicines.
The most popular forms of these medicines are liquid products made from a combination of different roots and herbs. A lot of these drugs are recognised by their brown or greenish colour, awful smell and repugnant taste.
Especially the taste!
Herbal medicine is usually touted to be a miracle remedy, with ability to cure all kinds of ailments. Which is where the problem mostly is.
A lot of them have no definite dose, and are taken for more than one kind of ailment.
In some cases, the herbal drugs are taken both internally and applied topically for completely different disturbances.
Seriously, imagine it.
It's like taking in Lonart (which is an antimalarial) then crushing the tablet and applying on your boil to heal it.
Ridiculous right?
Exactly!
But that's what a lot of herbal medicines in Nigeria do.
Before exploring some reasons why there seems to be a demand for herbal medicine regardless of how bitter they are, how tedious they might be to prepare or how ridiculous their miracle powers may seem, let's look at some of the favorite plants in the herbal world.
1. Moringa oleifera (Moringa): touted to be able to heal the sick, raise the dead and help you walk on water. I'm not joking, it's that miraculous.
2. Garcinia kola (Bitter kola): This one ages you overnight. Simply because, your face will remain contorted while chewing it. Don't know exactly what it does apart from stopping vomiting if you get travel sick, but it's said to do some other things.
3. Vernonia amygdalina (Bitter leaf): For many households I know in Nigeria, this juice is taken periodically to "cleanse the system." Like the name sounds, it's really bitter but has a sweet after taste.
4. Hibiscus sabdariffa (zobo): now, this drink is delicious. It's made with Hibiscus flower, pineapple and ginger. Really tasty. The thing is, to make it medicinal, lots of ginger is added. So it quickly goes from delicious to not-so-tasty.
5. Zingiber officinale (Ginger): Apart from its use as a spice, this is another miracle plant used for handling digestive issues, cold and cough.
6. Allium Sativum (Garlic): Oh dear, are you even a herbal expert if garlic is not in your arsenal? You know, with garlic, all I see is bad breath/mouth odour but for others, it's an antibiotic, antifungal, potent for cold, fever and even weight loss.
7. Azadirachta indica (Neem): Popularly called dogoyaro, it's a staple when it comes to topical herbal treatments. From acne, to rashes, spots to eczema, there's nothing neem can't take care of. It's also applied on wounds to stop bleeding.
The one time I saw its leaves being crushed and added to a bleeding wound, it did stop. What I don't know is if it was the potency of the leaves or the wound had simply bled to its satisfaction.
8. Cymbopogon citratus (Lemon grass): This was only heard of but not seen for me till Covid-19 arrived. It's said to be chock full of vitamin C so it's very good for building the immune system. It has a faint lemon scent but bitter taste.
9. Aloe barbadensis (Aloevera): possibly the mother of topical herbal treatment, Aloe is the GOAT. Topical use aside, aloe gel is also consumed to cleanse the insides and take care of digestive problems.
10. Agbo: The ancestor and OG herbal medicine in Nigeria. As you can see, I don't have the scientific name, neither do I have the common name. Reason is, agbo (in Yoruba language) is actually a combination of various stems, roots and leaves.
It becomes more complicated when you realise there are different types of agbo for different purposes so the combination varies even further. As for what it does, for the users, let's just say it's up there with Moringa or could actually put Moringa to shame.
This could be gotten already made or you buy the different stems & leaves with the instructions for preparation given to you. Note that, If you do prepare it yourself, your house will smell like a shrine.
Why is there a Demand for Herbal Medicine in Nigeria?
Ignorance
It takes an enlightened mind to understand the risks associated with herbal medicine. This is a major reason why herbal medicine is in high demand in Nigeria.
- What is the role of drugs in the body?
- What are the possible side effects?
- Do these drugs meet certain requirements?
- Are they approved by the right bodies?
These are questions that an enlightened person would ask when it comes to using drugs. But for the ignorant Nigerian, who doesn't know what their enlightened counterparts know, they can't ask such questions.
So they take these concoctions with the only consolation that that's what their ancestors used to treat themselves. Due to their limited knowledge, they glory in their ancestors, nothing else matters.
Poverty
In a country of millions of poor people, it would be dishonest to not admit how expensive modern medicine is for many. For the person that lives within $2, the hustle will be to get some food first, a 1,000 naira drug prescription be damned.
The money they might need to take a drug is probably feeding money for some days, why should they bother? So they go for the less expensive and easier alternative. Going to their backyard or buying some miracle juice for far less than the cost of modern medicine.
Poor Medical Care
With poor infrastructure, low doctor to patient ratio, unavailability of drugs at medical centres and few hospitals within their reach, you find that herbal medicine is more accessible to many Nigerians.
Add the glowing testimonials these herbal medicines receive and the stories that some casualties of hospitals share on a daily basis (both true and false), the users of these herbal medicines have good reasons to use them.
Cultural and religious beliefs
There are people whose denominations do not allow them to take drugs. For them, their faith is enough. And just like those, I've met the ones who due to their religious belief or culture constantly vilify vaccines and modern medicine as a whole.
So their only option is the old way. The "natural" way. The herbal way. For these ones, modern medicine is the devil itself. Add the reinforcement they get from their religious or cultural societies and leaders, you have loyal users of herbal medicine.
What Can be done About the Rampant Use of Herbal Medicine in Nigeria?
Education
If they're not told, how would they know?
Many of the users of herbal medicine in Nigeria would do better, if they know better. Therefore, massive sensitization and education of the dangers of abusing these unregulated products must be intensified.
They must know both the short and long-term implications of taking these drugs and know that there's an alternative that's in fact, better for them.
Improved Infrastructure
This plays a huge role in reducing demand for herbal medicine in Nigeria.
Accessible roads must be provided. There's no point having a hospital that's so difficult to get to, that it completely dicourages or would need the worst case scenario to go to.
Also, research institutions and universities should be properly funded to encourage research. Instead of allowing these concoctions to run wild, there should be strict regulation and standards to be met before they are released.
Then, provision of jobs and empowerment schemes. This would effectively curb the demand from those affected by poverty.
Better health care
Well paid and motivated health workers, well equipped health centres and access to health insurance are sure motivators for people to embrace modern medicine.
Conclusion:
1. I've seen people recover from using herbal medicine but I've seen and heard of more who had complications from using these concoctions.
2. A lot of Nigerians who use herbal medicine eventually run to the hospitals when things get worse. This means that they know the superior treatment but due to certain reasons delay in doing the right thing. Those reasons must be addressed.
3. I do prefer modern medicine but that's not to say herbal medicines are completely bad. If anything, this obvious demand should inspire more research. Possibly see what ingredients can be synthesised from these plants, encourage the pharmaceutical industry, open up doors for the sciences especially those with seemingly no use (microbiology, biochemistry, epidemiology, etc) in the country and force Nigerian regulatory agencies to sit up.
In conclusion, till there's proper regulation and standardization, herbal medicine in Nigeria is a menace that should be checked before things spiral out of control.
And if the reports linking herbal concoctions to kidney failure is anything to go by, there is trouble ahead.
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