27th April, 2023
By Oluwafunke Ishola
An NGO, Children Emergency Relief Foundation (CERF), has advised the public against the use of unprescribed medicines and herbal remedies to treat malaria.
Mrs Abosede Oyeleye, Executive Director, CERF, gave the advice during a medical outreach in commemoration of World Malaria Day on Thursday in Ikorodu, Lagos State.
Oyeleye said that self-medication, poor health-seeking behaviour and drinking of different herbal concoctions were exacerbating morbidity and mortality among citizens.
According to her, this has contributed to drug resistance, which lengthens treatment days or led to malaria complications.
“The rate of poverty and illiteracy in Ikorodu community is high, that is why ‘Agbo’ (herbal concoctions) is the first thing people think about to treat malaria.
“Many people buy these concoctions from roadside sellers who mix all sorts of things, including alcohol to treat malaria. Instead of getting better, it gets worse and makes medical treatment difficult.
“For over 15 years, CERF has been at the forefront of making people in communities know that they have to handle their health better and bring this support to their doorstep.
“Malaria is not a disease that should be downplayed. We need to educate more people on its dangers, proper treatment and collaborate toward eliminating it.
“Government cannot do it all. We all have a role to play, that’s why we are trying to sensitise the public about it,” she said.
Malaria is a life-threatening disease spread to humans by female Anopheles mosquitoes. It is mostly found in tropical countries.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 247 million cases of malaria were reported in 2021, from which 619,000 people died while 96 per cent of the fatalities lived in Africa.
WHO, in a report, said that more than 66 million cases of malaria occur annually in Nigeria, while one out of three deaths from malaria globally occurs in Nigeria.
The health agency said that about 200,000 deaths from malaria occurred in Nigeria in 2021, which translates to Nigeria contributing 27 per cent to global malaria mortality in 2021.