ABSTRACT
No studies have been conducted, to examine the negative impacts of liquid forms of
local herbal medicine sold in Yola and Jimeta in Adamawa state, Nigeria. Therefore,
this study aimed to assess the potential negative health impacts of these medicines,
by conducting lab experiments to investigate the presence of pathogenic bacteria in
purchased herbal medicine samples. 17 samples were purchased from Yola market
and Jimeta. Standard laboratory experiments were conducted, using Lysogeny Broth
Agar to culture bacteria, numerous selective media to identify different bacterial
species, and bacterial load of the herbal medicine samples were determined, using
serial dilution. The result showed that all samples purchased were contaminated with
bacteria. Out of the 17 samples analyzed, 15 were contaminated with Escherichia
coli, 9 with Salmonella sp., and 4 with Staphylococcus aureus. Half of the samples
from Jimeta had microbial load that exceeded the limit set by WHO and the
European pharmacopoeia, and their microbial load ranged from 6.0×105
cfu/g to
3.4×105
cfu/g. The other half purchased from Jimeta, which did not exceed the limit,
ranged from 1.9×103
cfu/g to 3.1×104
cfu/g. The results showed that, most locally
vii
prepared herbal medicine in Yola and Jimeta, are likely to be contaminated with
pathogenic microbes. Herbal medicine users are therefore at risk of getting
infections, while trying to cure ailments. Regulations on the preparation of liquid
herbal medicine should be implemented, to ensure safety and efficacy of herbal
medicines, as this is a serious public health issue. The public should also be wary of
buying from unlicensed practitioners.
Keywords
Herbal medicines, microbial load, bacterial contamination, Yola and Jimeta.
viii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CERTIFICATION ………………………………………………………………………………………. ii
READERS’ APPROVAL ………………………………………………………………………………iii
DEDICATION………………………………………………………………………………………………iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS …………………………………………………………………………….. v
ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………………………. vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS………………………………………………………………………………viii
LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………………………………………ix
LIST OF FIGURES ……………………………………………………………………………………….. x
CHAPTER 1 …………………………………………………………………………………………………. 1
INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………………………………. 1
HYPOTHESES, AIMS, & OBJECTIVES ………………………………………………………. 19
CHAPTER 2 ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 20
METHODS …………………………………………………………………………………………………. 20
Study area and sampling………………………………………………………………………….. 20
Materials……………………………………………………………………………………………… 21
Lab methods……………………………………………………………………………………….. 21
Serial dilution……………………………………………………………………………………. 23
CHAPTER 3 ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 25
RESULT……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 25
CHAPTER 4 ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 28
DISCUSSION ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 28
CHAPTER 5 ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 33
CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………………………………………. 33
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………………………….. 34
ix
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1.1. Medicinal plants, their synthesized drugs and functions……………………… 3
Table 2.1. Selective media used for the identification of different microbes, and the
color indication of each microbe on each media………………………………………………. 24
Table 3.1. Ailments and the local names of herbal plants used for its cure in Yola
and Jimeta…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 26
Table 3.2. Total Colony Forming Units/ml found in different herbal medicine
samples purchased from around Jimeta…………………………………………………………… 27
x
LIST OF FIGURES
Fig 1.1. Traditional medicines ………………………………………………………………………… 1
Fig 1.2. Herbal medicines ………………………………………………………………………………. 2
Fig 1.3. The ancient Egyptian papyrus, which is an early form of a book …………….. 4
Fig 1.4. Containers in Jimeta used for the storage of herbal medicines, sold to the
public …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 8
Fig 1.5. E. coli as viewed under the microscope ……………………………………………… 13
Fig 1.6. S. typhi as viewed under the microscope …………………………………………….. 14
Fig 1.7. The structure of Staphylococcus aureus …………………………………………….. 15
Fig 2.1. The map of Adamawa state, Nigeria ……………………………………………………20
Fig 2.2. A simple serial dilution of herbal medicine solution ……………………………. 24
Fig 3.1. Number of samples collected, for the treatment of different kinds of
ailments ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 25
Fig 3.2. Number of samples that contain the different kinds of microbes ……………. 27
1
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
It may not be breaking any world records right now, but herbal medicine once used
to be the only solution to bring back our ancestors from the brink of death before the
development of synthetic drugs. The use of herbal medicine reduced as modern
medicine evolved. Today, many people are finding their way back to the use of
herbal medicine, for the treatment of numerous illnesses.
Traditional medicine
Often, the term herbal medicine is confused with “traditional medicine.” Traditional
medicine comprises of different health practices, knowledge, beliefs and approaches
that consist of plant, animal and mineral-based prescriptions including profound
treatments, and practices used singularly or in combination with others to keep up
sound health, to additionally treat, prevent or diagnose ailments (WHO, 2003).
Herbal medicine on the other hand, is an integral part of traditional medicine (TM),
which means it is only a part of traditional medicine.
Fig 1.1. Tradition
DISCLAIMER: All project works, files and documents posted on this website, eProjectTopics.com are the property/copyright of their respective owners. They are for research reference/guidance purposes only and some of the works may be crowd-sourced. Please don’t submit someone’s work as your own to avoid plagiarism and its consequences. Use it as a reference/citation/guidance purpose only and not copy the work word for word (verbatim). The paper should be used as a guide or framework for your own paper. The contents of this paper should be able to help you in generating new ideas and thoughts for your own study. eProjectTopics.com is a repository of research works where works are uploaded for research guidance. Our aim of providing this work is to help you eradicate the stress of going from one school library to another in search of research materials. This is a legal service because all tertiary institutions permit their students to read previous works, projects, books, articles, journals or papers while developing their own works. This is where the need for literature review comes in. “What a good artist understands is that nothing comes from nowhere. The paid subscription on eProjectTopics.com is a means by which the website is maintained to support Open Education. If you see your work posted here by any means, and you want it to be removed/credited, please contact us with the web address link to the work. We will reply to and honour every request. Please notice it may take up to 24 – 48 hours to process your request.
