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Ghanaians Look to Herbal Remedies for COVID-19

Stacey Knott

   AKUAPEM-MAMPONG - Sincethe COVID-19 outbreak, Ghanaians havetraveledto
   a plant research center outside the capital, Accra, togivescientists
   and researchers herbal products and plants they think will help cure
   the coronavirus--or at least alleviate symptoms.'¯

   About 70%of Ghanaians depend on herbal remedies for their healthcare.'¯
   Last year, government hospitals began integrating the practitioners and
   training them to incorporate scientific methods into their work.The
   Center for Plant Medicine Research grew out of a visit by a Ghanaian
   doctor to China in the 1960s to learn from Chinese herbal medicine.

   The center's acting executive director, KofiBobiBarimah, dreamsof
   finding a cure for COVID-19, thedisease caused by thecoronavirus that
   came from China. And he's not the only one.

   Some people come to the centerlocatedin a lush, mountainous area in
   Ghana's Eastern Region claiming they have a cure for the virus revealed
   to them in a dream.

   "What we have told them is that it is good that ithas been revealed to
   you," said Barimah. "But at the Center for Plant Medicine Research,
   what we do is that we do research to look at thesafety of it and then
   also to make sure it is something that can be consumed by the
   public.And we also make sure that it is something that is plant-based."

   In the labs of the center, researchers have been testing local herbal
   products to see what might help in Ghana's fight against COVID-19.

   So far, they have recommended herbal products to boost immunity.But the
   center is also testing and planning trials of herbal medicines against
   the virus, scientist AlfredAmpomahAppiah said.

   "Herbs have what we call phytonutrients or phytoconstituents, and when
   we use these herbs, they have a broad activity that might contribute to
   health a lot."

   Ghanaians' belief in traditional, plant-based medicine is widespread.

   The center grows medicinal plants to help with a range of diseases and
   conditions, including malaria, typhoid and high blood pressure,Michael
   Ofori,atechnologistatthe center, says.
   "Our forefathers were using these herbs long before we were born,but
   they didn't have the scientific means to research and know the actual
   dosage of the plants," Ofori said. "Now,we are being privileged to have
   that technology at hand,so then we have to attach that technology to
   the herbal aspects so they can be very safe for us to consume."

   In a town close to the center, trader Abena Oye said she relies on
   herbal remedies and hopes Ghana will find a traditional cure for
   COVID-19.

   She saidwe will be happy because the illness is something that is
   worrying us. All our finances are messed up. The whole world is a mess,
   she said.So,if the medicine comes,she said,we will be very happy,and we
   will take it, and it will help us, and Ghana will be held in high
   esteem.

   That is also theultimate goalof Ghana's Center for Plant Medicine
   Research. But any treatment, they say, must rely on scientific
   evidence, not just dreams.

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