Following thatherbal medicinesremain an alternative to traditional communities who cannot afford orthodox medicine, experts have cautioned the high level of conatmination of most herbal medicines sold in the country.In the analysis of different herbal concoctions prepared locally for the treatment of malaria, fistula, convulsions, and skin rashes from various part of Nigeria, scientists found that their level of microbial contamination clearly exceeded the tolerable limits.They indicated that the presence of a large number of disease-causing organisms, including S. aureus, B. cereus, E. coli, etc., was a cause for concern.According to them, 'there is an urgent need for establishing certain minimum hygiene practices in the preparation of herbal remedies in this environment. Also, the Government should take adequate control measures to set specific standards for quality and dosage for traditional medicaments. Otherwise, a lot of harm may be done to the health of those who patronise herbalists for medical care.'The latest of such evaluation of six herbal antimalarials was carried out in Elele, Rivers State by Y.M Tatfeng and T.O Ojo from the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Bayelsa state in collaboration with EH Olama from the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Madonna University, Elele, Rivers state. It was published in the 2010 issue of the African Journal of Traditional Complementary and Alternative Medicines.The antimalarials preparations were obtained from different marketers at Elele, Rivers state. They included chopped roots of neem soaked in alcohol (Schnapps); sliced leaves of lemon grass soaked in alcohol Schnapps; Sliced stem barks of neem soaked in palm wine; sliced stem barks of neem and leaves of scent leaf or efirrin in Yoruba, guava, lemon grass, neem, mango and unripe leaf of pawpaw all cut into pieces, boiled in water, allowed to cool and sieved into a clean container.Another antimalarial preparation was made from leaves of lemon grass, leaves of neem, leaves of mango tree and unripe bark of the fruit of pawpaw and bitter leaves, boiled in a pot till it changed colour, allowed to cool and then sieved into a clean container.They researchers wrote: 'The occurrence of isolates such as E. coli O157H7 and Entercoccus feacalis is of serious medical importance as its presence could indicate a potential feacal contamination. Both water and alcohol base preparations harboured organisms; however, 'Schnapps' base preparations recorded lower microbial load than the water base preparations which recorded load above acceptable levels.'According to them, 'water base preparations contamination could result from the water used for the preparation. The traditional healers could have been the source of contamination as the hygienic requirement may not have been met. Soil could also be a source of contamination as medicinal plant materials normally carry a large number of microbes originating from the soil.'Given that some herbal antimalarials may be helpful in the management of malaria fever, they declared 'serious attention should be given to this alternative branch in medicine so that its limitations do not overshadow its benefits'.But the situation is not different in Lagos either. A study that investigated the bacterial and fungal quality of herbal concoctions for the treatment of malaria, fistula, convulsions, and skin rashes that were obtained from herbalists operating in Lagos metropolis clearly exceeded the level of microbial contamination that was tolerable.These were 'Agbo iba' for treatment of malaria, which contains Hippocratea indica (ponju-owiwi in Yoruba), Nauclea latifolia, (ubulu inu in Igbo, egbesi in Yoruba and marga in Hausa) Enantia sp.( Iyani or Awopa in Yoruba), lime, and the bark of mango. The 'Agbo jedijedi' for treatment of fistula contains Tetrapleura tetraptera (aidan or aridan in Yoruba), Ancistrophyllum secundiflorum(erugbo in yoruba), Eugenia caryophyllus (cloves), and Parinari. The 'Agbo giri' for treatment of convulsions in children consists of Ocimum gratissimum(scent leaf or efirrin in Yoruba)and black alum while the 'Agbo narun' for treatment of skin rashes consists of Lophira alata (also called Azob or Ekki and 'red ironwood'), Ceiba pentandra(silk tree or araba in Yoruba), and Pergu-lariadaemia (utazi in Igbo or Teji in Yoruba).It was carried out by Dr. I.A. Adeleye of the Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos in a letter to the editor of the Journal of Health Population Nutrition.In addition, a similar study carried out on 60 medicinal plants sold in five local markets Abeokuta by MacDonald Idu, Joseph O Erhabor, Solomon E Omonigho, all from the University of Benin, Benin City equally emphasised the need for constant quality assessment of herbal drugs on sale in order to ensure the production of therapeutic products suitable for human consumption. It was indicated in the June 2010 edition of the Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research.They wrote: 'The findings from this study reiterate the need for constant quality assessment of herbal materials in the market in order to ensure that medicinal plant materials and products are suitable for human consumption. Medicinal plants sold in markets should be placed in clean sterile baskets or suitable hygienic packs. The moisture content of the plant materials should always be maintained at minimal levels to reduce the rate of microbial proliferation.
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