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CHAPTER ONE
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1.0 INTRODUCTION
Traditional medicine or folk medicine practice is based on the use of plants and plant extracts. It also known as botanical medicine, herbal medicine, herbology and phytotherapy. The scope of herbal medicine is extended to include fungal and bee products as well as minerals, shells and certain animal parts (Achary and Shrivastava, 2008).
The importance of herbal medicine cannot be over-emphasized as the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that 80% of the world’s population presently uses herbal medicine as part of primary health care (WHO, 2000).
The practice of herbal medicine includes a holistic approach which involves selecting herbs on an individuals basis for each patient, identifying the underlying cause of a patient’s illness and considering it in the treatment plan, stimulating the body’s healing capacity to strengthen body systems and correcting abnormal body functions rather than treating observable symptoms directly (Alqosouimi, 2006).
The term herb is applied by pharmacist to any plant or plant part that possess medicinal properties (John, 2004). Medical herbalism is the use of plant remedies in the prevention and treatment of illness. Currently, medical herbalism practiced by medical herbalists, draws on traditional knowledge, but increasingly, this is interpreted and applied in a modern context (Alqosouimi, 2006).
The use of herbal medicine has been on the increase in many developing and industrializing countries (Barnes, 2003). It is known that between 65 and 80% of the world’s population use herbal medicines as their primary form of health care (Barnes, 2003).
In develop nations, regulation of sales, importation and manufacturing of herbal medicines are not subjected to rigorous scrutiny in terms of safety and efficacy as is the case for conventional orthodox medicine, that is why heavy metals have been reported in some of these herbal products (Barnes, 2003; Zaleska, 2008).
1.1 Definitions of Terms Used in Traditional MedicineÂ
In order to make WHO definitions of consistent, certain terms have now been redefined. Furthermore, the following definitions have been developed in order to meet the demand for the establishment of standard, internationally accepted definitions to be used in the evaluation and research of herbal medicines
1.1.1Â Â HerbsÂ
Herbs include crude plant material such as leaves, fruit, flowers, root e.t.c. Which may be used as whole fragment or in powdered form.
(Rockville, 1997).
1.1.2Â Â Herbal materials
Herbal material include, in additional to herbs, fresh juices, gums, fixed oils, essential oils, resins and dry powders of herbs. In some countries, these materials may be processed by various local procedures, such as steaming, roasting or stir-baking with honey, alcoholic beverages or other materials. (Dr. Williams Wilson, 2000).
1.1.3Â Â Herbal Preparation Method
Herbal preparation are made through a variety of methods which include, grinding dried herbal materials extraction, fractionation, purification, concentration and other possible physical or biological process. It can also include steeping or heating herbal material in alcoholic beverages and/or honey in other materials. (MD, USA, 1997).
1.1.4Â Â Finished herbal productsÂ
Finished herbal products consist of herbal preparations made from one or more herbs. If more than one herb is used, the term mixture herbal products can also be used. Finished herbal products and mixture herbal products may contain excipietnsin addition to the active ingredients. However, finished products or mixture products to which chemically defined active substances have been added, including synthetic compounds and/or isolated constituents from herbal materials, are not considered to be herbal. (National center for complementary and alternative medicine WHO, 1997).
1.1.5Â Â Traditional use of herbal medicines
Herbal medicine include herbs, herbal materials, herbal preparations and finished herbal products, that contain as active ingredients parts of plans, or other plant materials, or combinations. Traditional use of herbal medicines refers to the long historical use of these medicines. Their use is well established and widely acknowledged to be safe and effective, and may be accepted by national authorities. (Dr. xiaorui Zhang, Traditional Medicine, 1997).
1.1.6Â Â Therapeutic activity.Â
Therapeutic activity refers to be successful prevention, diagnosis and treatment of physical and mental illness; improvement of symptoms of illnesses: as well as beneficial alteration or regulation of the physical and mental status of the body. (WHO/ TRM, 2000).
1.1.7 Active ingredientsÂ
Active ingredients refer to ingredients of herbal medicines with therapeutic activity. In herbal medicines where the active ingredient have been identified, the preparation of these medicines should be standardized to contain a defined amount of the active ingredients, if adequate analytical methods are available. In cases where it is not possible to identify the active ingredients, the whole herbal medicine may be considered as one active ingredient. (Hong Kong Sin, 2000)
1.1.8 Importance of Traditional Medicine
The importance of traditional medicine as a source of primary health care was first official recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) in the primary Health Care (PHC) Declaration of Alma Ata in the former USSR (1978) and has been globally addressed since 1976 by the traditional medicine programme of the WHO. That programme define traditional medicine as:
The sum total of all the knowledge and practices, whether explicable or not, used in diagnosis, prevention and elimination of physical, mental or social imbalance and relying exclusively on practical experience and observation handed down from generation to generation, whether verbally or in writing.
This approach was endorsed by the International Conference on Primary health Care. The declaration of Alma Ata, in describing PHC, referred to the need for a variety of health workers including Traditional Medical practitioners (TMP’S) who are suitably trained social and technically to work as a health team and to respond to the expressed needs of the community.
TMP’s include: herbalists, bone setters, TBA’s traditional psychiatrists, spiritual healers and other specialists. These traditional practitioners are recognized in some countries by the community as providers of health care who use herbs, animal and mineral substances and certain other methods.
1.1.9Â Â Vital role of traditional medicine in PHC:Â
The traditional system of medicine is engrained in our culture, and a large population of the Nigerian population depends on this indigenous system for relief.
About 80 percent of the people in the developing world depend on traditional medicine for primary health care. This is due to the fact that orthodox medicine is mostly out of reach in both physical terms as hospitals are far away from the rural populace and in financial terms, the poverty level is high. Solutions to economic problems are therefore seriously hampered by poverty and ignorance to disease
1.2Â Â Â Â Â Heavy Metals
Heavy metals have been defined differently by many authors depending on the angel from which each author looks at it, but toxicity, density as well as molecular weight are salient points that inevitably appear in all the definitions of heavy metals (Barnes, 2003; Philips and Balge, 2007).
The term heavy metal refers to any metallic chemical element that has a relatively high density and is toxic or poisonous at low concentrations, and examples of heavy metals include cadmium, zinc, iron, nickel and lead (Philips and Balge, 2007; Zaleska, 2008). Heavy metals are also referred to as metals having atomic weight greater than sodium, a density greater than 5g/cm3 and possess some level of toxicity (WHO, 2000; Alqosouimi, 2006).
Heavy metals are natural components of the earth’s crust. They cannot be degraded or destroyed and could enter human body via food, drinking water, soft drinks, hot drinks, cigarette and air. Heavy metals constitute health risk to individual because they bioaccumulate in the body when ingested via fluids, food or through other sources of contamination and are stored faster than they are excreted (Philips and Balge, 2007: Zaleska 2008).
Some heavy metals are essential for the human body at trace amounts however it can be dangerous and even toxic if present in a higher concentration (David and Fred, 1999). When they bioaccumulate they disrupt the function of some vital organs and glands in the human body such as brain, kidney and liver (Suranjana and Manas, 2009).
1.2.1 Heavy Metal Poisoning     Â
Heavy metal poisoning is the toxic accumulation of heavy metals in the soft tissues of the body.
1.2.2Â Â Description
Heavy metals are chemical elements that have a specific gravity (a measure of density) at least five times that of water. They heavy metals most often implicated in accidental human poising are lead, mercury, Nickel, and cadmium. More recently, some heavy metals, such as zinc, copper, chromium, iron, and manganese, are required by the body in small amounts, but these same elements can be toxic in larger quantities.
Heavy metals may enter the body in food, water, or air, or by absorption through the skin. Once in the body, they compete with and displace essential minerals such as zinc, copper, magnesium, and calcium, and interfere with organ system function. People may come in contact with heavy metals in industrial work, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and agriculture.
Children may be poisoned as a result of playing in contaminated soil. Lead poisoning in adults has been traced to the use of lead based glazes on pottery vessels intended for use with food, and contamination of Ayurvedic and other imported herbal remedies.
1.2.3 Causes and symptoms
Symptoms will vary, depending on the nature and the quantity of the heavy metal ingested. Patients may complain of nausea, vomiting, diarrhear, stomach pain, headache, sweating, and a metallic taste in the mouth. Depending on the metal, there may be blue-black lines in the gum tissues.
Heavy metal poisoning may be detected using blood and urine tests, hair and tissues analysis, or x-ray. The diagnosis is often overlooked, however, because many of the early symptoms of heavy metal poisoning are non specific. The doctor should take a thorough patient history with particular emphasis on the patient’s occupation.
1.2.4Â Â Treatment
When heavy metal poisoning in suspected, it is important to begin treatment as soon as possible to minimize long-term damage to the patient’s nervous system and digestive tract. Heavy metal poisoning is considered a medical emergency and the patient should be taken to a hospital emergency room.
The treatment for most heavy metal poisoning is chelation therapy. A chelating agent specific to the metal involved is given either orally, intramuscularly, or intravenously. The three most common chelating agents are calcium disodium edetate, dimercaprol (BAL), and pencillamine.
The chelating agent encircles and binds to the metal in the body’s tissues, forming a complex; the complex is then released from the tissues to travel in the bloodstream. The complex is filtered out of the blood by the kidneys and excreted in the urine. This process may be lengthy and painful, and typically requires hospitalization.
1.3Â The Effect of Heavy Metal on Human Health
1.3.1Â Â Cadmium
Both acute and chronic exposure to cadmium has a negative impact for human health. Acute oral ingestion results in severe gestorenteritis while chronic exposure primarily affects the bones, kidneys and possibly the lungs. Cadmium is a cumulative toxin. Its levels in the body increase over time due to its slow elimination.
It accumulate in muscle, bone and more in the liver and kidneys. In certain cases such as iron deficiency cadmium absorption increase thus, women with lower iron status are believed to be at risk for greater absorption of cadmium after oral exposure (Olsson et al., 2002). Threshold level in air, drinking water and human body are, cadmium intakes from air is 0.8µg/day (JECFA,1989).
Drinking water from shallow wells of areas where the soil had been acidified contained concentration of cadmium approaching 5µg/L (Friberg et al, 1986). Food is the main source of cadmium intake for non-occupational exposed people. Crop grown in polluted soil irrigated with polluted water contain increased concentrations, the daily intake of cadmium has also been estimated to be in the range 10-35µg/L (Galal – Gorchev, 1991).
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1.3.2  Lead Â
Lead is one of the major heavy metals, it has been known for its adverse effects on different body organs. Long exposure to Pb results in a decrease in the performance of the nervous system and lowers renal clearance (Salawu et al., 2009; Gamil et al., 2009). According to the international Agency for Research on cancer (IARC, 1966), inorganic lead is carcinogenic to human. Threshold level of lead in air defend on a number of factors, including proximity to roads and point sources. The average intake of lead from air is 0.5µg/day for an adult. The review of lead levels in drinking water approved by WHO is 0.05ppm. Dietary intakes as high as 500µg/day have been reported, regular consumption of wine can also result in a significant increase in lead intake.
1.5 Justification of the Study
It is a well known fact in literature that plant grown in a contaminated soil with heavy metals tend to absorb this metals through their roots and translocate them to various part such as, leaves, steam, fruits, roots e.t.c and the main raw material in traditional medicine are the plants and it is various part there for it is worthy of investigation to ascertain the locally soil traditional medicines for the level of some toxic elements.
1.6 Aims and Objective of the Study
The aims of this work is to determine the concentration of some selected heavy metals in locally sold traditional medicine in Panteka market Kaduna, with the view to ascertain whether these medicines are safe for human consumption
1.7Â Objectives
Collection of locally sold traditional medicine from the study area
Pre-treatment of sample in the laboratory
iii.      Digestion of the sample for AAS analysis
Subjecting the result obtained to statistical treatment
Compare the result obtained with the standard values
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