The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, gave this directive in a statement signed by NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, to mark the year 2021 Africa Traditional Medicine day, in Abuja on Monday, August 30, 2021.
Prof. Adeyeye claimed that; “If someone is using herbal medicine and a conventional medicine simultaneously, there may be a problem. Let’s say that medicine is supposed to lower the blood pressure or lower sugar content for diabetes, and that person took conventional medicine and the sugar level is lower and he now takes a herbal remedy, that person may go into hypoglycemic shock. Meaning the level of sugar in the blood is too low because the two are now working synergistically.’’
Adeyeye claimed that there may be a drug-herbal medicine interaction, that is, the drugs and the herbal concoction might interact with each other which may cause a lot of harm.
She also revealed that, sometimes, herbal medicine may actually reduce the effectiveness of conventional medicine. She, therefore, advises Nigerians to always consult with their pharmacists and/or their doctors before taking a herbal concoction along with a conventional drug.