September 2021 Vol. 9 No.9

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Original Research Article

COVID-19 and Herbal Remedies, the On-going Debate in Ghana

Ismael Owen Opoku^1*, Emmanuel Aboagye², Owusu Adjei Ernest³

¹Physical Education and Sports Department, Konongo Odumase Senior High School
²Physical Education Department, Akrokerri College of Education
³Physical Education Department, St. Louis College of Education

*Corresponding Author's Email: ishmaelowen@gmail.com
Orcid: 0000-0002-1468-6424

Received: 15 August 2021  I  Accepted: 21 September 2021  I  Published: 27 September 2021  I  Article ID: MRJMMS21075
Copyright © 2021 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article.
This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0.

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic has affected many people since its discovery in December 2019. The easiest mode of contracting the virus and the increase in the death rate has resulted in scientists finding an everlasting remedy to control the situation. In the current study, the general knowledge of Ghanaians on the COVID-19 pandemic was examined. Again, the study analysed if Ghanaians support the use of herbal medicines as effective to treat the pandemic. A survey generated with google form was used to gather the views of 104 participants. A Principal Component Factor Analysis (PCFA) grouped the variables into four components: preventive measures, herbal medicines, awareness, and treatment. People’s general knowledge of the pandemic reported preventive measures as the highest, followed by awareness and treatment. While Ghanaians recognise the use of herbal medicines as effective in boosting the immune system to fight many diseases, including the COVID-19, they disagree with the submission that herbal medicines are more effective than drugs for treating the coronavirus. The study recommends a thorough clinical investigation in the use of herbal remedies and conventional drugs to determine the effectiveness of treating the pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19, Conventional drugs, Herbal medicines, Pandemic, Treatment