**9. Conclusion**

are no doubt more important in developing countries but quite relevant in industrialized world in the sense that pharmaceutical industries have come to consider them as a source or lead in the chemical synthesis of modern pharmaceuticals [24, 58]. A number of African plants have found their way in modern medicine. These plants which had been used traditionally for ages have through improved scientific expertise been the sources of important drugs.

Ajmalicine for the treatment of circulatory disorders and reserpine for high blood pressure and mental illness both from *Rauvolfia serpentina*, L-Dopa for parkinsonism is obtained from *Mucuna* species, vinblastine and vincristine used for the treatment of leukemia from *Catharanthus roseus*, physostigmine from *Physostigma venenosum*, or "Calabar bean," used as a cholinesterase inhibitor, strychnine from the arrow poison obtained from the plant *Strychnos nux-vomica*, atropine and hyoscine from *Atropa belladonna* leaves. A host of other African plants with promising pharmaceutical potentials include *Garcinia kola*, *Aframomum melegueta*, *Xylopia aethiopica*, *Nauclea latifolia*, *Sutherlandia frutescens*, *Hypoxis hemerocallidea* (African wild potato), and *Chasmanthera dependens* as potential sources of antiinfective agents, including HIV, with proven activities [59], while *Cajanus cajan*, *Balanites aegyptiaca*, *Acanthospermum hispidum*, *Calotropis procera*, *Jatropha curcas*, among others, as potential sources of anticancer agents [60]. Biflavonoids such as kolaviron from *Garcinia kola* seeds, as well as other plants,

**8. Advantages and disadvantages of traditional herbal medicine**

considered to be a lot safer than orthodox medicine, being natural in origin.

Both Western or traditional medicine come with their own challenges. Currently, there are many western drugs on the market which have several side effects, in spite of their scientific claims. In like manner, African traditional herbal medicine or healing processes also have their own challenges. The following are reported as some of the advantages and disadvantages:

African herbal medicine is "holistic" in the sense that it addresses issues of the soul, spirit, and body. It is cheap and easily accessible to most people, especially the rural population. It is also

Some of the disadvantages include improper diagnosis which could be misleading. The dosage is most often vague and the medicines are prepared under unhygienic conditions, as evidenced by microbial contamination of many herbal preparations sold in the markets [57]. The knowledge is still shrouded in secrecy and not easily disseminated. Some of the practices which involve rituals and divinations are beyond the scope of nontraditionalists such as Christians who find it incomprehensible, unacceptable, and difficult to access such

Examples of such drugs and their sources include:

have antihepatotoxic activity [61].

**8.1. Advantages**

208 Herbal Medicine

**8.2. Disadvantages**

services [8, 62].

Long before the advent of Western medicine, Africans had developed their own effective way of dealing with diseases, whether they had spiritual or physical causes, with little or no side effect [63]. African traditional medicine, of which herbal medicine is the most prevalent form, continues to be a relevant form of primary health care despite the existence of conventional Western medicine. Improved plant identification, methods of preparation, and scientific investigations have increased the credibility and acceptability of herbal drugs. On the other hand, increased awareness and understanding have equally decreased the mysticism and "gimmicks" associated with the curative properties of herbs. As such, a host of herbal medicines have become generally regarded as safe and effective. This, however, has also created room for quackery, massive production, and sales of all sorts of substandard herbal medicines, as the business has been found to be lucrative.

African traditional herbal medicine may have a bright future which can be achieved through collaboration, partnership, and transparency in practice, especially with conventional health practitioners. Such collaboration can increase service and health care provision and increase economic potential and poverty alleviation. Research into traditional medicine will scale up local production of scientifically evaluated traditional medicines and improve access to medications for the rural population. This in turn would reduce the cost of imported medicines and increase the countries' revenue and employment opportunities in both industry and medical practice. With time, large scale cultivation and harvesting of medicinal plants will provide sufficient raw materials for research, local production, and industrial processing and packaging for export.

The scope of herbal medicines in Africa in the near future is very wide, but the issue of standardization is still paramount [64].

This therefore calls for ensuring that the raw materials should be of high quality, free from contaminations and properly authenticated, and samples deposited in University, National, and Regional herbaria. There is need for pharmacopeia to provide information on botanical description of plants, microscopic details, i.e., pharmacognosy, origin, distribution, ethnobotanical information, chemical constituents and structures, methods of quality control, pharmacological profile and clinical studies, including safety data, adverse effects, and special precautions [21, 62]. Such wealth of information will no doubt bring about uniformity in production quality. Rather than viewing African herbal medicine to be inferior, it may yet turn out to be the answer to the treatment of a host of both existing and emerging diseases such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, ebola, zika, etc., that may defy orthodox medicine.

#### **9.1. Future perspectives**

Future perspectives in this area include:

**a.** All countries in the African region must seek to recognize traditional medical practice by putting out regulations and policies that will be fully implemented to ensure that the THPs are qualified and accredited but at the same time respecting their traditions and customs. They must also be issued with authentic licenses to be renewed frequently.

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These if achieved would put African herbal medicine in an admirable position in the World health care system.
