By Zayamu Hassan
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has warned against using liquid herbal medicines 14 days after preparation, insisting that such medicines should always be kept refrigerated.
The Director General of the agency, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, gave the warning in a statement signed by NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, to mark the year 2021 Africa Traditional Medicine day, in Abuja.
She, however, called for the use of the herbal medicines with care because, according to her, it could be harmful.
“The general public should use herbal medicine with care. First of all, we don’t know the quantity that you are supposed to take. And the fact that it is natural doesn’t mean it is not toxic,” she warned.
Prof. Adeyeye explained that ‘’toxicity is not about the volume consumed. It is not about the amount. Something can be in a micro quantity and kill.
“It just depends on the type of drug or chemical. It is extremely important not take it as you see it. Just because you prepare it in your house doesn’t mean you can drink it like water. It may be dangerous’
The NAFDAC director general warned that fourteen days after preparation, liquid medicine may start to develop bacteria that can make people sick.
According to her, the problem associated with herbal medicine are many because our people don’t understand that it is all supposed to be driven by science.
“If you prepare herbal medicine in liquid form you don’t know how stable the medicine is going to be in water. If it is not stable and it is degrading to another thing, it may hurt,” she said.
She cited the example of those who engage in hawking herbal preparations on the streets under the scorching sun. The heat generated by the sun, she explained, may have a way of causing decomposition of the active ingredients in the medicines being sold, which may pose significant health risks to those buying and consuming these preparations.
“That’s why herbal medicine in Nigeria has to be handled with care. Some people take herbal medicine like vaccines. Herbal medicines are derived from plants mostly, sometimes from animals in few cases.
Vaccines are different. Vaccines are from human or animal cells that have been programmed to elicit immunologic effects in the body,” she said.
