NEWS
Medicinal plants help keep children healthy in South Africa : 61 species were recorded
Tshepiso Ndhlovu 1 , Abiodun Olusola Omotayo 2 , Adeyemi Oladapo Aremu 2 and Wilfred Otang-Mbeng 1
Current Address : 1 . University of Mpumalanga , 2 . North-West University Reprinted From : The Conversation
In 2021 , almost 33 of every 1,000 South African children under five years old died .
This under-five mortality rate is far worse than in similar middle-income countries such as Brazil ( 14.4 per 1,000 births ), Cuba ( 5 per 1,000 ), India ( 30.6 ), Indonesia ( 22.2 ) and Egypt ( 19.0 ).
South Africa ’ s under-five mortality rate also lags behind the UN ’ s Sustainable Development Goal of reducing these figures worldwide by 2030 to 25 deaths per 1,000 .
Significant progress has been made . In 1994 South Africa ’ s under-five mortality rate was 60.4 per 1,000 . The government ’ s Expanded Programme on Immunisation was one health intervention that made a difference .
However , inequalities persist . The underfunded public health sector has been stretched to serve 71 % of the population .
Worldwide , many people , particularly those in rural settlements , depend on medicinal plants for their health . In August 2023 , the World Health Organization held the first global summit on traditional medicine , in India .
As researchers with an interest in indigenous knowledge , we explored the use of medicinal plants as remedies against diseases among children in the North West province of South Africa .
Of the province ’ s population , 49.2 % live below the poverty line with no access to proper housing , water and sanitation . These conditions have an impact on children ’ s health .
Figure 1 . The common yellow commelina , one of the popular plants used to treat children . WikiCommons
19 Grassroots Vol 24 No 1 March 2024