Sunday Times, 06 October 2002, HIV study looks to traditional muti Brett Horner
A bold new plan involving traditional medicine in the treatment of HIV/Aids is being explored by the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine in Durban.
The objective of the project is to
identify safe and effective therapies in the fight against the disease, looking
specifically at indigenous plants used in traditional South African medicine.
The initiative is being closely followed by the US National Institutes of Health
- an agency of the US Department of Health.
Medical scientist Dr Nceba Gqaleni, from the medical school's African Health
Care Systems division, confirmed this week that the US institute was studying
a proposal by the school for a grant to research the use of traditional medicine
in the treatment of HIV/Aids.
Gqaleni said the aim was to develop a traditional system to manage the disease
holistically. "We are not only looking for substitutes for antiretrovirals
but also medicines to combat opportunistic infections associated with the disease."
He also said the project involved resurrecting staple foods like sorghum, which
were highly nutritious and ideal for patients, but were no longer being cultivated.
Dr Jonathan Kagan, deputy director of the Aids division at the National Institute
of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a department of the NIH, confirmed that
preliminary discussions for funding were under way.
"The NIH is interested in funding quality research to investigate complementary
and alternative approaches to HIV/Aids treatment and prevention. This could
include investigations of traditional healing methods," said Kagan, who
visited the school in July.
"Overall, I was very impressed with the quality and depth of the ongoing
and planned studies. Most of my discussions were about 'traditional' HIV/Aids
research."
Sangomas and inyangas from Mwelela Kweliphesheya, a development arm of KwaZulu-Natal
Indigenous Healers, would provide information about the flora used in traditional
muti.
The US institute noted that "many HIV-infected people of colour utilise
complementary and alternative medicines". Gqaleni said local research supported
this, with studies revealing that most people had visited a traditional healer
before consulting a medical doctor.