THATO TJOFANE

EXTENDED ESSAY

Table of contents
Abstract……………………………………………………................................................2
Introduction…………………………………………………….…………………………….3
Background
Information ……………………………………………………………………………………4
Design of investigation……………………………………………………........................6
Data analysis…………………………………………………………………………………17
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………18

Subject:
Social and Cultural Anthropology
Topic:
Factors which remain a setback to Lesotho’s development
Research question: to what extent can traditional herbal medicines (alternative
medicine) give efficacy in inducing therapeutic effects over HIV/AIDS related ailments
and other diseases for Basotho between 2014 - 2015?

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Abstract
In a tension existing between two scenarios, one being the fact that while some
people make positive claims and show a sense of satisfaction towards the output
given by medicinal use of natural plants, herbs and shrubs, that they have a fairly
great therapeutic effect towards illness treatments others, on the contrary state
just how difficult it is to trust these natural materials that have not undergone any
industrial processing and modifications whatsoever. Hence in addition to being
quite skeptical on the effectiveness of such materials, they have fear that rather
than improving the health quality, they can deteriorate matters. From this basic
observation I was able to bring myself to contemplate on what could be the most
appropriate research question to formulate for my extended essay, one to which I
could properly relate, which, furthermore would allow me an opportunity to work
on and achieve a wide platform exploration into issues and ideas that would
relevantly assist me in compiling not only convincing arguments but also
satisfactory analytic statements.
A strategic means of acquiring raw data involved conducting a survey with open
ended questionnaires which basically had me personally interviewing and
discussing relative issues with the rightfully concerned groups of people, whom
are the dealers of the medicinal natural plants, herbs and shrubs as well as
people who use/used these materials with the aim of curing their ailments or
diseases between years 2014-2015. This particular survey lasted a week
because I would find the dealers off duty on some of the days intended for an
investigation. On the ground that I could never have had everybody willing to
sacrifice their precious time for taking my interviews, I realized I could do with
four participants, two of whom were males and the other two females, just to
avoid bias.
Apart from this, media was a substantially useful resource in aiding me towards
obtaining information on what the effects, both good and unpleasant, of using
these particular materials could be in relation to human health- to be more
specific, I relied mostly on the internet due to the inadequacy of appropriate
sources I could make use of as well. Based on the responses I received from
every individual who was kind enough to value and contribute towards the

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success of the whole of my survey, I was able to establish an ideal and reflective
analysis, one which clearly illustrated the significance and value in other
indirectly- involved factors that could be associated with the functioning of these
medicinal materials and play an integral role on serving

Introduction
To appropriately serve the requirements of the research question, the
investigation will lead to ensure validity through guidance as provided by
the following key issues.

1. Direct Personal Response

Focusing largely on the personal claims, opinions and views expressed

by individuals, this phase of the entire analytical data collection of the
investigation would assist towards establishing a corner of reflective
ideas related to the observable effects of using traditional medications
as described by the users, their attitudes towards such usage as well as
other concerns like medical dosage.

2. Media Input

Media plays a greatly vital role of keeping us well aligned and familiar
with issues and concerns as they take place in the world around us.
With this regards, it would help a great deal to dig up for information
together with the rest of relevant materials from a sufficiently wide
range of media sources in relation to usage of traditional medications,
effects, views and opinions etc.

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Health is one of the factors that could act measures to social development in a
country and this makes crucial an attempt of carefully monitoring and examining
the effects, harmful or therapeutic, which an extensive use of traditional
medications could pose onto its people. This means that at times their health
could end up jeopardized or affected in any unnamed form ensuing a specified
period engaging in such practice(s).

Background Information

It has been discovered that amongst other things, embedded in the natural
glamour of Lesotho lies roughly 3000 flora species which form part of the 800
genera and 200 families. Important to note here is some members of this
spectrum continue even today to fall into use for serving therapeutic purposes for
some of Basotho people, which has been a common traditional practice for
Basotho over numerous years in accordance to history. For instance,
Asteraceae, also known as compositae, being one flora family proven to exist in
vast numbers as marked over several, or most appropriately the majority of
regions of land appears to significantly provide a sufficient number of plant
species used in traditional medicines.
In an attempt to make a living, certain individuals officially engage in a sale of
these l herbs and such as members of the compositae, dicoma anomala(hloeya)
and others, which are believed to be medicinal. Therefore, for treating body
ailments, interested candidates purchase these materials in varying quantities
depending on personal desires.

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Figure 2.0 below shows a selling area flocked with various medicinal
substances left in exposure to the public.

A picture showing some of the dried medicinal plants sold at one corner in
the town of Maseru in Lesotho

Figure 2.0
(thato, 2019)

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DESIGN OF THE INVESTIGATION

 Survey
In need of a strategy that would directly bring me closer to the knowledge of what
effects these natural plants possessing therapeutic properties have on the users
and sufficiently expose me to various opinions and ideas people have towards
them, I conducted a survey where I prepared questionaries’ for two groups of
people. A questionnaire is a direct means of collecting information and
knowledgeable issues through offering a chance for direct communication and
personal interaction with the targeted respondents, therefore there could be a
fairly better chance of reliability in the responses provided by the individuals
regarding the effectiveness of the products which they utilize themselves. A first
group was named group 1, to make simple a time to time reference. It consisted
of two sellers/ dealers of the medicinal substances and the other, being group 2
was purely a group of individuals who were customers and users to the sold
medicinal products. In as much as it would be reasonably unacceptable and
vague to develop an analysis over an extremely narrow range of raw information,
for instance one relating to a single person, I decided that questions reserved for
each group should be common for each one of the participates belonging to the
groups distinctively.

I got the inspiration to realize that gathering from several sources information that
would meet requirements of the survey and investigating how certain factors,
perhaps life style related may affect the functionality of the herbal drugs and
medicinal plants was a necessity, therefore made it another portion of my research.
But most importantly I was able to realize that it would be more than helpful to
formulate the survey questionnaire with questions closely related to the mentioned
conditions so as to permit me to establish a solid and sufficiently valid link
between my findings.

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Coming back to the survey, because there is always a slight difference in the
style a seller and a buyer are attached to or have knowledge pertaining to goods
being sold, I deemed it a necessity to organize for both group 1 and group 2,
two questionnaires with slight differences. In table 1.0 below I have indicated
clearly some of the objectives and goals which I looked forward to achieving by
preparing two sets of questions for both groups.

Group Objectives/ Goals

Group 1  Find out about the nature, origin
and treatment of the natural
plants, herbs and shrubs sold
 Acquire information regarding a
few diseases/ ailments these
medicinal materials are known
to treat
 Know about the kind of claims,
attitudes or ideas presented to
the dealers by the buyers about
the effectiveness or functioning
of the medicinal substances
sold.
Group 2  Obtain information on the
kind of natural medicinal
substances they purchase as
well as the named
diseases/ailments for which
they are intended
 Discern the observable
effects of such on the health
state
 Find out about the period of
use and relative dosage of
the medicinal substance(s)
 Uncover also the health
habits such as eating
practices and physical
fitness maintenance exercise

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Table 1.0

figure 2.1 below acts as evidence for a survey exercise with one of the dealers
of the medicinal plants , herbs, stems and shrubs, which was conducted in one
corner of Maseru town in Lesotho.

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(thato,2019)
Figure 2.1

Group 1a: Survey Questionnaire

Male 1

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Survey Question
1 Where have all these medicinal
plants, herbs and shrubs been
obtained?
2 What treatment/modification or
processing has been performed
on them if any, in being prepared
for sale?
3 In treatment of what diseases,
ailments of health conditions can
they be used ?
4 How do you find business going
on daily basis?
5 What feedback ,claims or
comments do people who have
bought return to give you
regarding the effectiveness of
these medicinal substances ?
6 On average , how many people
per day would you say arrive to
purchase these products ?
7 On frequent terms, what age
group seems to be mostly coming
along to buy the products on daily
basis in general?
Table 1.1
Group 1b: Survey Questionnaire
Male 2
10
Response
They have been obtained from from
the remote region of Lesotho called
Sehong- hong
None. after being freshly extracted
from nature, they’re simply dried
and brought at the customers
’service in their pure form
The most common diseases include
fever, kidney failures, heart
diseases,
The movement of business
fluctuates on daily basis. One day
you get overly lucky and generate
amazingly good sales, the next
day it’s a totally different situation
Ever since I established this little
enterprise, all of the customers who
made their way back to deliver
remarks and opinions seemed
ideally satisfied with the results
obtained from their continuous use
of the products.
In general around 10 people
reach over daily to purchase
these herbal products .
It may not be as highly reliable a
judgement but I assume it’s
mostly people over the age of 30
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Survey Question Response

1 Where have all these medicinal
plants, herbs and shrubs been
obtained?
2 What treatment/modification or
processing has been performed
on them if any, in being prepared What follows right after they have
for sale?
3 In treatment of what diseases,
ailments of health conditions can liver diseases and genital diseases
they be used ?
4 How do you find business going
on daily basis?
5 What feedback ,claims or
comments do people who have
bought return to give you
regarding the effectiveness of
these medicinal substances ?
6 On average , how many people
per day would you say arrive to
purchase these products ?
7 On frequent terms, what age
group seems to be mostly coming from 28 years and above
along to buy the products on daily
basis in general?
How far did you go in education
A part is obtained from Free State
province in south Africa while some
are local materials that come
freshly from the mountainous
places of our country
No treatment or modification is
performed on the herbal drugs.
been harvested is shaking off soil
from them, loading them into a car
and carrying them to the market.
Bone ailments such osteoporosis,
Business goes fairly well , but we all
know there always are good and
bad days
A greater fraction of customers who
bother to give feedback on the
effectiveness of my herbal products
seem pleased. Some of them,
however claim that it was not until
they started on these medicinal
drugs that they strangely developed
allergies
About 15 individuals come over to
buy, or sometimes just to inquire on
the products
I assume that it could be people
All I have is a certificate for
primary education

Table 1.2

Group 2a: Survey Questionnaire

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Survey Question Response

Female 1 Female 2
1 Can you be specific as to what I had used I
product you have used together seholobe(aloe striatula)
with the kind of disease/ailment to ease my abdominal
you had wished to cure ? pains
2 How did you come to decide to use A friend of mine had Medicine is all we’ve
the herbal medicinal products? suggested that I try it known since childhood,
out. I for one do not fully
trust these western
medicinal products ‘
3 How much intake of your herbal The dealer from whom I would take one cup in
medicine did/do you make on I had made a purchase the morning and that
regular basis? suggested that two would be it for the day
cups a day would do
4 Do you engage in any physical I am a very busy Yes I regularly go out
fitness activities or other ways peasant man , I hardly to the gym to ensure a
of ensuring body health ever have time to go good and healthy shape
maintenance ? through such activities for my body
5 On general terms, would you say Not really, because I Yes it did work , even
your use of the medicinal product cannot say things had though it seemed to
has made a positive impact gotten any better in my have taken much longer
towards treatment of your ailment? 3 months of use time than the dealer
had claimed
6 How far in education did you go ? Because of financial I was forced to pull out
difficulties , I was not of school when I was in
able to take my studies year 5 of my primary
further after education because of
completing my junior the deplorable living
certificate conditions in my family

Table 1.3

Group 2b: Survey Questionnaire

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Survey Question
1 Can you be specific as to what
product you have used together
with the kind of disease/ailment
you had wished to cure
2 How much intake of your herbal
medicine did/do you make on
regular basis?
3 Do you engage in any physical
fitness activities or other ways
of ensuring body health
maintenance ?
4 On general terms, would you say
your use of the medicinal product
has made a positive impact
towards treatment of your ailment?
5 Have you ever suffered any side I caught a bad flu
effects or developed an allergy which followed
of any kind in the course of supposedly three
taking the medicinal drug?
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Response
Male 1 Male 2
I have used for over a I had suffered a
month period , a heartburn which
commonly known miraculously lasted
product hloenya over two weeks
(dicoma anomala) to
suppress abdominal
pain
The dealer had my grandma had taught
recommended that me that it would do no
because the product harm to the body taking
produces highly at maximum a cupful of
powerful effects, it warm water mixed with
could pose hazardous crushed lumps of
health effects if take medication
excessively and
suggested that taking
twice a day two cupfuls
of boiled mixture of
water with the drug
would be sufficient to
yield positive effects
Yes, I do whenever I get Not necessarily but I
a chance to. Although always find a duty to
not on regular terms, I keep me busy during
go to the gymnasia the course of the day,
every two weeks in a like working in the farm
month and watering the
gardens
I have used the Definitely! and I’m glad
medicine for over 2 with the results, though
months but I’m still I was a bit skeptical at
experiencing pain first that anything good
could ever come out in
using these traditional
healing drugs, until a
friend of mine
recommended that I use
them
no, nothing at all
THATO TJOFANE

weeks of my
consumption.

Table 1.4

MEDICINAL HERBS USED BY HIV- POSITIVE PEOPLE IN LESOTHO

Ever since Lesotho was claimed to have had the third highest HIV prevalence
across the globe on 2014, the level of alternative medicine consumption towards
treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus rose abruptly until the recent
years. Because it does not cost much to acquire them, coupled with the believe
that they have a lower tendency of posing side effects are what yields to the
people’s preferable use of medicinal herbs
Between the 6th March and the 20th of May 2015, a research was carried out,
based at two district hospitals in Lesotho to find out about the medicinal herbs
which were used by HIV- positive people and examine also the various purposes
for their use.
Figure 3 below illustrates the responses made by the participates regarding their
medicinal herb usage. From a total of 389 participates who adhered the survey, it
was discovered that 242 (62.2%) occasional used the medical hers, and
discovered also from 30(7.7%) that they relied strongly upon use of the her. The
remaining 30.1% affirmed they had ever attempted treating the condition herbal
way. This implies that 69.9% of the participants had taken medicinal herbs at
least on a single time

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Fig 3

Figure 4 below displays the percentage frequency of reason for using medicinal
herbs by participants

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Fig 4
It is common knowledge that HIV-positive victims are mostly susceptible to a
number of diseases, especially when their situation has gone extreme to an AIDS
condition because it is the time the body’s immune system becomes weak. As
shown from the chart above, the participants’ use of medicinal herbs was
towards treatment of rashes, purposes of boosting the immune system and many
others.

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Table 1.5 below provides information on the identity of herbal drugs as disclosed
by the participants, relative subjects of treatment as they disclosed along with the
corresponding conventional courses over which the herbal medicines are used

Participants Vernacular/ Botanical Frequency Use by Use in

group Common name & [N=210] participant Literature
name family

1 Lesoko Aleptidea 7(3.3%) Boost Chest and

cordifolia immunity head colds
2 Garlic Allium 44(21%) General Antimicrobial,
sativu well-being , candida
boost albicans
immunity
3 Konofolo Alliumspp 4(1.9%) boost Anticancer
(alliace) immunity
4 Lekhala la Aloe ferox 6(2.8%) boost Sexually
Quthing immunity, transmitted
abdominal infections
pains,
rushes
5 Seholobe Aloe 20(9.5%) Abdominal Diarrhea,
striatula discomforts purgative
(aloaceae) and pains
6 Lengala Artemisia 2(1%) Colds and Coughs,
afra flues colds, loss of
appetite
7 Motsetse Cussonia 1(0.5%) Boost Intestinal
(Araliaceae) immunity, ulcers,
loss of indigestion,
appetite Heartburn
8 Hloenya Dicoma 30(14.3%) Abdominal Colds fever,
anomala discomforts Stomach
and aches ailments

Table 1.5

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Now in the above data, a total of 210 participants gave back responses on the
health difficulties that lead to their use of the named herbal medicines. The
majority responses indicate that boosting the body’s immune was in the forefront
to the rest of the reasons stated.

DATA ANALYSIS

As according to the data presented in table 1.5 above, we do realize that the health
conditions towards which the use of medicinal herbs was directed are almost
entirely aligned to the majority if not all of the literature medicinal functions of the
herbs. Few of the examples could be the responses made from the participants
group 1 and 2 whereby the participants had indicated boosting the body’s
immunity to have been the key subject on their use of medicinal herbs and indeed
herbal substances like garlic are shown to have the antimicrobial properties.
From the findings shown in table 1.1 and 1.2 respectively, made on a personal
direct survey I conducted, yes from the two of the herbal dealers who were
approached to meet the demands of the research it was discovered that their
literacy standards were very low due to the fact that they had stopped school at
low academic stages. Although we could not be in a position to predict the career
path they could have picked had they had a privilege of furthering their studies, the
chances that they would have known a lot better about the efficacy and toxicity of
the herbal drugs if they were exceedingly educated are significantly high. Again it
would be absolutely inappropriate to declare an image of a whole population of
Basotho African herbal medicine dealers based on the responses given by two
men; however, the majority of these dealers are less educated individuals who rely
strongly on the sale of the herbal drugs to earn a living.
Sutherlandia frutescens (sutherlandia) and allium sativum (garlic) are known to
be a few of the herbs commonly known to be in a substantial use by the HIV-
positive people in Sub-Saharan Africa. Allium sativum (garlic), as one of those
that were used by participants (table 1.5) is a perennial herb consisting of active
biological chemicals such as ajoene, allicin, diallyl disulfide, which are responsible
for its antimicrobial, antivirul and even anticancer features (Lee et al.,2012; Motsei,
Lindsey, Van Staden & Jagger,2003).

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CONCLUSION
For investigating the extent to which use of alternative medicine could result in
positive efficacy over HIV/AIDS disease treatment, data obtained from a 2015
investigation was analyzed. As according to the results obtained from the survey
absolutely nothing was known to the participants regarding the efficacy and safety
of the medicinal herbs they had used. To a large extent, use of traditional medicine
does trigger positive efficacy towards antiretroviral treatment ad treating more
other diseases for Basotho people because the statistics from the 2015 HIV/AIDS-
related survey also go on to reveal that; of the entire body of participants, 69.9%
individuals disclosed to have used herbal medicine in the course of anti-retroviral
treatment. Adding to the fact that this portion is over half the total sum (50%), to
the observation that the mentioned majority purposes over herbal medicine usage
were greatly in line with the literature functions of the herbs, it brings me to
conclude that since the majority of the HIV/AIDS victims do make use of the
traditional herbal medicines (69.9%), and many are able to make a relative proper
usage of the drugs over treatment towards several diseases (justified in table 1.5),
to greater extent it brings efficacy over antiretroviral treatment as well as over other
disease. However, the issue of the herbal drug dealers and the users knowing so
little or nothing at all regarding the efficacy and safety of the drug, as was found to
be the case from the HIV/AIDS- related 2015 survey and from my primary data
provokes at a high likelihood, allergic responses such as nausea, vomiting ,
headache and many others as indicated in some of the responds made by the
participants .This is a reason that discredits the effectiveness of traditional herbal
medicines- that even though they substantially produce specific therapeutic effects
over a specific treatment , they do come along with side-effects on health,
especially when rightful dosage is not so familiar to the market.

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Bibliography: list of references

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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