**4. Attitudes toward traditional medicine**

review issues related to herbal medicines toxicity within appropriate contexts to allow for their beneficial use. In this regard, the safety implications of medicinal plants used in traditional medicine and or in diets are discussed and some literature on animal toxicity, acute and

Plants have been used since time immemorial for diverse purposes in the life of mankind particularly as food, and medicines for nutrition and the treatment of diseases, respectively, in both humans and animals. They are used in all cultures of the world and have been relied upon for several millennia to support, promote and restore human health. They form a vital component of traditional medicine (TM) and their use for the maintenance of health and wellbeing is a common practice in all African societies. They are used as remedies for the prevention and treatment or management of a plethora of disease conditions including relatively

Traditional medicine used to be the only health-care system available to the whole of the African population prior to the introduction of allopathic or conventional medicine [2]. The practice received international recognition after the 1978 Alma Ata Conference Declaration, which aimed to achieve primary health care for all by the year 2000 through the use of traditional medicine [3]. TM, especially herbal medicine, still forms the backbone of rural health

There exist diverse reasons for the continuing use of herbal medicines for health care in Africa; these include cultural acceptability, easy accessibility and affordability, and in some instances, non-availability and prohibitive cost of allopathic medicines [4]. Some people also employ herbal medicines under other circumstances, for example, in health conditions that had failed to respond to orthodox treatment or which allopathic medicines are deemed not to treat adequately and less safely [5]. Other health conditions believed to have spiritual origins [2] and those thought to need holistic therapies are also managed with herbal medicines.

The practice of herbal medicine is embedded in traditional medicine which origins may be implied in varied anecdotes. It is claimed that its beginnings in humans were instinctive, as seems to be the case in animals. As humans were afflicted by various illnesses over time, they learned to pursue remedies from various formulations from plant and animal parts, and mineral substances. Over time, the therapeutic properties of medicinal plants for the treatment of certain diseases have been validated through scientific experiments; thus, medicinal plants usage gradually abandoned the anecdotal framework and became founded on empirical and explicatory facts [6]. Other diverse claims have been made in relation to the origin of herbal medicines used in traditional medicine in Africa. Some claimed the medicines originated from the deities

care in Africa, supporting an estimated 80–90% of the population.

**3. Evolution of herbal medicine in traditional medicine**

**2. Justification for the use of herbal medicines**

chronic toxicities, and cytotoxicity of some African medicinal plants are reviewed.

new ones such as HIV/AIDS [1].

64 Herbal Medicine

Ever since the dawn of the scientific era, prejudice against traditional medicine has been noted [7]. This has resulted in a situation described as 'passionate ambivalence' toward TM, fuelled by the influence of Western religion and education, urbanization and globalization phenomena in Africa [2]. The result has been continued as negative pronouncements from some segments of western-educated African elites concerning the use of TM especially concerning the quality, efficacy and safety of African medicinal products, creating doubts about the benefits of the medicines. This is in spite of the fact that TM still plays an important role in health-care delivery in Africa and had rarely witnessed major reported cases of adverse effects even after hundreds of years of practice [2].

Besides, some persons with little or no knowledge of herbal medicines tend to focus on reported toxicities and criticize the practice often out of context. Moreover, mass media reports of adverse events tend to be sensationalized and give a negative impression about the outcomes from the use of herbal medicines, instead of identifying the causes of these events, which may relate to a variety of issues [8]. Several scientific studies conducted on the biochemical properties of medicinal plants used in traditional medicines to treat various illnesses have confirmed their efficacy and safety especially in animals. As seen in several publications, the efficacy [9] and sometimes the safety of some medicinal plants and herbal medicines have been validated through research [10–12].
