Friends or enemies: traditional African medicine and conventional drugs

Some traditional African medicines may interfere with the normal metabolism of drugs. For example, St. John’s Wort is a natural remedy frequently used for depression. But it’s been shown to increase the removal of medicines, such as some oral contraceptives, from the body.

This can lead to ineffective levels of the prescribed medicine, putting women at risk of pregnancy when they think they are protected.

On the other hand, the interaction could also result in reduced clearance of a drug. This may lead to higher levels of the prescribed medicine in the body, which produces negative side effects and could even lead to toxicity.

These interactions happen at a metabolic level. So even herbal products that are safe when used on their own may pose a risk when taken in combination with Western medicine – that is, synthetic pharmaceutical agents.

Some of the best known examples of drug interactions are the effects of citrus, particularly grapefruit juice, and alcohol of many prescribed medicines. These combinations should be avoided.

Another example of particular importance in Africa is Cancer bush (Sutherlandia frutescens). It is widely used in the treatment of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and TB, especially in countries like Zambia, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and South Africa, as it is believed to generally improve quality of life in these patients.

But it has been shown to lower the plasma levels of the antiretroviral drug, atazanavir, to sub-therapeutic levels when they’re taken together, reducing its anti-HIV efficacy.

This traditional remedy can also interfere with isoniazid therapy, which is used as a preventative measure in TB treatment.

Despite these known interactions, policy makers still promote the use of these herbal remedies in the management of HIV/AIDS and associated illnesses. Clearly more public engagement is needed so patients understand the risks of interaction.

But it’s not all bad news. Interactions between African traditional medicines and prescribed medicines can potentially be exploited for good.

One of the biggest problems in the development of new medicines is the low uptake of these compounds into the body, or its quick removal.

In some studies, traditional medicines have been shown to have the ability to increase uptake or decrease the metabolism of prescription drugs. Applying these effects could enable the development of new herb-drug combinations with increased efficacy and reduced side-effects.

But studies that characterise and evaluate the healing properties or potential toxicity and drug interactions of traditional African medicines are very limited.

This is further complicated by the fact that so many medicinal plants (more than 5000) are being used. So healthcare practitioners have limited information and often can’t make proper recommendations to patients who use such traditional remedies.

Whether positive or negative drug interactions are at play, African countries need to improve their regulation around traditional medicines.

Only a few, among them Nigeria, Cameroon and South Africa, have incorporated traditional African medicines into their adverse drug reaction reporting systems.

By Chrisna Gouws. This article first appeared in The Conversation

Ed: How about Zimbabwe? Didn’t Herbert Ushewokunze introduce traditional medicines way in the country’s hospitals way back in the early 1980s?

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