AWARENESS, ATTITUDE AND LEVEL OF UTILIZATION OF HERBAL MEDICINES AMONG ADULTS IN AGBOWO COMMUNITY, IBADAN NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, NIGERIA.

Abstract

Herbal medicines are medicinal products derived from plants. They are herbal preparations for the treatment or prevention of diseases. Their use is an age long tradition which is passed from one generation to another. In some cases, it is the exclusive preserve of some families. There is an increasing demand for herbal medicines in recent years. However the level of awareness, attitude and pattern of use of herbal medicaments in a metropolitan community has not been adequately explored. The objectives of the study were therefore to determine the level of awareness relating to herbal medicines among adult resident in Agbowo community, assess their attitude towards herbal medicines and identify their practices relating to use of herbal medicine. A descriptive cross -sectional study design was used and the study was carried out among adults in Agbowo community. The EPI cluster sampling technique was adapted and used to conduct the study. A semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. The questionnaire was divided into four sections: Social–demographic characteristics; awareness and sources of information on herbal medicine; attitudes towards herbal medicines and practices relating to the use of herbal medicines. The questionnaire was reviewed for quality and consistency and pre-tested among adults in Iwo road in Ibadan North East LGA with similar characteristics to ensure validity of the results. The Cronbach’s Alpha model technique was employed to measure the reliability of the survey instrument using the SPSS computer software. Data was analyzed using the IBM SPSS version 20.0 and Microsoft Excel 2007 software. Statistics and chi square were used to analyze the data at P= 0.05. The survey revealed that; respondents aged 30-39years (42.0%) topped the list followed by those aged 20-29 years (32.0%). The commonest source of information on herbal medicines among the respondent’s was radio (79.7%) followed by television (68.2%). It was observed that 45.75% of the respondents were of the opinion that herbal medicines are safer than orthodox medicines. However, 28.4% of the respondents’ were of the view that herbal medicines should only be used when orthodox medicine fails. Furthermore, 54.6% of males and 45.4% of females use herbal medicines, Majority of males (62.1) % and 37.9% of the females combine the use of herbal and orthodox medicines. The prevalence of use of herbal medicine among respondents in Agbowo community was high and most respondents had positive attitude to the use of herbal medicines. It is recommended that community enlightenment programs on the positive dangers associated with combined use of herbal and orthodox medicines be implemented in the study population.