A Quantitative Documentation of the Composition of Two Powdered Herbal Formulations (Antimalarial and Haematinic) Using Ethnomedicinal Information from Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Abstract

The safety of many African traditional herbal remedies is doubtful due to lack of standardization. This study therefore attempted to standardize two polyherbal formulations from Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria, with respect to the relative proportions (weight-for-weight) of their botanical constituents. Information supplied by 41 local herbal practitioners was statistically screened for consistency and then used to quantify the composition of antimalarial (Maloff-HB) and haematinic (Haematol-B) powdered herbal formulations with nine and ten herbs, respectively. Maloff-HB contained the stem bark ofEnantia chloranthaOliv. (30.0),Alstonia booneiDe Wild (20.0),Mangifera indicaL. (10.0),Okoubaka aubrevilleiPhelleg & Nomand (8.0),Pterocarpus osunCraib (4.0), root bark ofCalliandra haematocephalaHassk (10.0),Sarcocephalus latifolius(J. E. Smith) E. A. Bruce (8.0),Parquetina nigrescens(Afz.) Bullock (6.0), and the vines ofCassytha filiformisL. (4.0), while Haematol-B was composed of the leaf sheath ofSorghum bicolorMoench (30.0), fruit calyx ofHibiscus sabdariffaL. (20.0), stem bark ofTheobroma cacaoL. (10.0),Khaya senegalensis(Desr.) A. Juss (5.5),Mangifera indica(5.5), root ofAristolochia ringensVahl. (7.0), root bark ofSarcocephalus latifolius(5.5),Uvaria chamaeP. Beauv. (5.5),Zanthoxylum zanthoxyloides(Lam.) Zepern & Timler (5.5), and seed ofGarcinia kolaHeckel (5.5). In pursuance of their general acceptability, the two herbal formulations are recommended for their pharmaceutical, phytochemical, and microbial qualities.