Pregnant women’s attitudes towards complementary and alternative medicine and the use of phytotherapy during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Approximately 80% of individuals worldwide use various holistic complementary and alternative medicine (HCAM) methods, including herbal products, to prevent diseases and improve their general health. In this study, it was aimed to investigate complementary and alternative therapy (CAM) and the use of phytotherapy by pregnant women in the COVID-19 pandemic period. Methods This is a cross-sectional and descriptive study. The study included 381 women who applied to a public hospital in Türkiye and used herbal products during this pregnancy. Purposive sampling method was used. The study data were collected through “Identifying Information Form”, “Holistic Complementary and Alternative Medicine Questionnaire (HCAMQ)” and “Information Form on the Use of Phytotherapy”. In the analysis of the study data, descriptive statistics, the one-way ANOVA and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used. Results The study was completed with 381 pregnant women. The average age, parity and gestational age of the pregnant women were 28.33±6.09, 2.17±0.95, 29.11±8.87, respectively. It was determined that 37.3% of pregnant women did not know the ingredients of the herbal products they used and 38.8% found them safer than the drugs. HCAMQ total mean score of the pregnant women was calculated as 34.62±16.22. It was found that the pregnant women used garlic the most (65.6%), followed by cumin (38.6%), curcuma (36.2%), and ginger (34.4%). HCAMQ total mean score was found to be lower in the pregnant women who found herbal products safer than drugs (p<0.001), who were not aware of the content of the herbal product they used (p<0.001), and who used herbal products so as to protect against COVID-19 (p = 0.041), to increase their physical resistance (p = 0.022), and to facilitate childbirth (p = 0.002). It was determined that among the pregnant women who knew the content of the herbal products they used (Odds Ratio (OR) 1.122; 1.095–1.149 95%CI; p<0.001) and who did not know (OR 1.114; 1.085–1.144 95%CI; p<0.001), as negative attitude towards HCAM increased, their status of finding traditional drugs safer increased. Among the pregnant women who used herbal products to protect against COVID-19 (OR 1.142; 1.111–1.174 95%CI; p<0.001) and to increase their physical resistance (OR 1.120; 1.094–1.147 95%CI; p<0.001), as negative attitude towards HCAM increased, their status of finding conventional drugs safer increased. Conclusion In today’s world where the use of herbal products and CAM has become widespread, it is important to raise the awareness of pregnant women about the benefits and harms of these practices about which there is inadequate evidence.