Herbal drinks that have been poisoned with alcohol have a long history in Nigeria, where many people use them as medicines. However, their production and consumption have greatly increased in recent years.
Health professionals assert that this development could offer serious health hazards and that there is a need for tighter regulation and more public awareness of the risks associated with consuming them.
Such herbal beverages were frequently utilized as a treatment for numerous illnesses until recently. However, they have developed into an increasing threat in Nigeria as more people consume them without realizing their inherent dangers, particularly those who live in the suburbs. These beverages are also frequently touted as being secure and natural.
They are frequently offered for sale in unregulated markets and are produced by fermenting herbs, roots, and other organic materials with alcohol. They do not have to adhere to the same safety regulations as alcoholic beverages sold in stores.
The possibility of hazardous substances in alcoholic herbal drinks is just one of the numerous issues that need to be addressed.
These alcoholic herbal drinks are marketed and drank in considerable amounts in Jikwoyi, Zuba, Nyanya, Dutse Alhaji, and Lugbe, some of the satellite towns in Abuja’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
According to research by DAILY POST, the majority of the local bars are busiest in the morning and late at night.
Some clients claimed they turned to drinking alcoholic herbal drinks because they could get high quickly and for little money while acting as a drug for a specific ailment.
The results of a recent study by scientists from the University of Ibadan in Oyo State, titled “Nigerian Psychoactive Alcoholic Herbal Mixture Impacts, Behavioural Performance and Caused Brain Biochemical and Histopathological Alterations in Mice,” revealed that alcohol herbal mixtures affected mice’s neurobehavioral and biochemical processes.
As a result of acute and subacute administrations of an alcoholic herbal mixture coupled with ethanol, the results demonstrated an enhanced reduction in locomotor activity and poor motor coordination in mice.
The study also showed that brain chemistry alterations, including elevated oxidative stress indicators, led to behavioral disturbances like anxiety and impaired working memory.
This suggests, according to the study, that ingesting an alcoholic herbal cocktail could cause substance-attributable harm and hasten the progression of neurodegenerative illnesses in people.
Some herbal beverages have high concentrations of methanol, a poisonous alcohol that can kill or blind people, interact with drugs, and aggravate existing medical conditions.
