| dc.description.abstract | People engage in the use of herbal therapies and other natural treatments owing to the
impression that they are more efficacious and risk-free than allopathic medicines. These
herbal remedies may have their own benefits but the safety is not guaranteed. This study
investigated the knowledge, perception and pattern of use of herbal remedies among
commercial drivers in Olorunda Local Government Area, Osogbo, Osun state.
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a three-stage sampling
technique. A total of 374 respondents were selected from four motor parks (‘Oke-Fia’,
‘Stadium’, ‘Old garage’ and ‘Ota-Efun’) using proportionate and systematic random
selection, with an interviewer-administered questionnaire used to collect data from them.
Knowledge about herbal remedies was assessed using a 5-point scale with score < 4
categorized as ‘poor’ and ≥ 4 as ‘good’. Perception about herbal remedies was assessed
using a 13-point scale with score < 7 categorized as ‘unfavorable’ and ≥7 as ‘favorable’
towards herbal remedies. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square
test at p = 0.05.
Out of the 374 questionnaires administered, 352 were used for the data analysis, the
remaining were rejected because they had too many missing data. Respondents were all
males and the mean age was 44.3±10.2 years. Majority (98%) of the respondents reported
use of herbal remedies. Also, the majority (99.1%) of respondents had awareness about
herbal remedies and the major source of information about herbal remedies was through
elders (98%). Other leading sources of information included hawkers (91.4%), family
members (88.9%), friends (88.9%), co-drivers (81.7%), radio (77.1%), and television
(74.9%). Majority (82.4%) of the respondents showed poor knowledge of herbal
remedies while only 17.6% had good knowledge. Majority (96.9%) of the respondents
had a favorable perception about herbal remedies while a bare 3.1% had an unfavorable
perception. Respondents used herbal remedies for both prophylactic and curative
treatment of health problems including malaria, pile, typhoid and stomach ache. Most
(63.7%) of the respondents reported the intake of alcohol-based herbal remedies such as
‘sepe’, ‘alomo bitters’ and ‘paraga’ which have intoxicating properties, however, only
32.1% of them reported the intake before driving. Respondents’ age, marital status,
knowledge of herbal remedy and perception of herbal remedy showed statistically
significant relationship with usage of herbal product when need arises (p<0.05).
However, there was no relationship between other socio-demographic characteristics and
usage of herbal medicine as all tests of associations were not statistically significant.
Herbal medicine is popular among the respondents but they appear to be ignorant of its
potential toxicities as reflected by the poor knowledge and favorable perception about the
medicine. Public enlightenment programs and effective communication about safe use of
herbal medicines may be necessary as a means of minimizing the potential adverse
effects. | en_US |
