Prevalence and correlates of herbal medicine use among type 2 diabetic patients in Teaching Hospital in Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundType 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients are increasingly using herbal remedies due to the fact that sticking to the therapeutic regimens is becoming awkward. However, studies towards herbal medicine use by diabetic patients is scarce in Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to explore the prevalence and correlates of herbal medicine use with different sociodemographic variables among type 2 diabetes patients visiting the diabetic follow-up clinic of University of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital (UOGCSH), Ethiopia.MethodsA hospital-based cross sectional study was employed on 387 T2DM patients visiting the diabetes illness follow-up care clinic of UOGCSH from October 1 to November 30, 2016. An interviewer-administered questionnaire regarding the demographic and disease characteristics as well as herbal medicine use was completed by the study subjects. Descriptive, univariate and multivariate logistic regression statistics were performed to determine prevalence and come up with correlates of herbal medicine use.ResultsFrom 387 participants, 62% were reported to be herbal medicine users. The most prevalent herbal preparations used were Garlic (Allium sativum L.) (41.7%), Giesilla (Caylusea abyssinica (fresen.) (39.6%), Tinjute (Otostegia integrifolia Benth) (27.2%), and Kosso (Hagenia abyssinicaa) (26.9%). Most of herbal medicine users (87.1%) didn’t consult their physicians about their herbal medicine use. Families and friends (51.9%) were the frontline sources of information about herbal medicine followed by other DM patients who used herbal medicines (28.9%).ConclusionsThe present study revealed a high rate of herbal medicine use along with a very low rate use disclosure to the health care professionals. Higher educational status, a family history of DM, duration of T2DM and presence of DM complications were identified to be strong predictors of herbal medicine use. From the stand point of high prevalence and low disclosure rate, it is imperative for health care providers to strongly consult patients regarding herbal medicine use.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12906-018-2147-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Herbal medicine from the perspective of type II diabetic patients and physicians: what is the relationship?

“…Half of the diabetic patients in our study did not consult their doctors before starting to use herbal remedies, which was consistent with another previous study which reported that 68% of participants had not disclosed their herbal usage to their doctors [35]. Reasons reported by previous studies for such lack of disclosure were: doctors rarely ask patients about their herbal use, as reported here [36], or due to an anticipated negative response [23]. The absence of clear communication between patients and healthcare providers may have a potentially serious effect on patient health and outcomes as patients may experience plant toxicity due to improper use, expected and unexpected side effects, and herb-drug interaction with hypoglycaemic drugs.…”

“…A study in Australia of pregnant women using CAM practice reported that nonprofessional sources of information were found to be influential in the studied population [33]. However, healthcare providers were the least likely source to be used, which was in line with one previous study conducted in Ethiopia [23].…”

“…Similarly, in Alrowais' cross-sectional study which was conducted in four major hospitals in Riyadh, it was reported that patients aged between 60 and 75 years were the most frequent users of herbs for diabetic management [30]. This study agrees with the findings of Ching, Amaeze and Mekuria's studies related to gender differences, which showed that women were more likely to consume herbal remedies than men [22,23,29]. In a study by Shih et al in Taiwan, patients aged 20-69 years traditional Chinese medicine use frequency was significantly higher in women than in men across all age groups.…”

“…Data revealed that two-thirds of the sample who suffer from diabetes were frequently using alternative therapies such as herbal medicine to control their glucose level and improve their health, in accordance with two previous studies conducted in Africa (Ethiopia, Nigeria) [22,23]. However, two other studies conducted in Asia (Thailand) and the Middle East (KSA and UAE) showed that less than one-third of the sample were found to be using herbal medicine [24][25][26].…”

Incidence and predictors of diabetic ketoacidosis among children with diabetes in west and east gojjam zone referral hospitals north west Ethiopia, 2019.

“…Thus, Self-care of glycemic control can have a great impact on DKA existence in many patients and contribute to most of the increased morbidity and premature mortality [13,14] . Even, many patients seek alternative treatments such as consulting traditional healers, using herbal remedies [15] , prayers and rituals that further complicating the disease process [16] . Many studies showed that being a younger age (< 5 yrs.…”