Wahab Mohd Shahezwan Abd, Hamdi Humaira', Ali Aida Azlina, Karuppannan Mahmathi, Zulkifli Muhammad Harith, Maniam Sandra, Ung Carolina Oi Lam
Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Selangor, Kampus Puncak Alam, 42300 Puncak Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.
Non-Destructive Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research Centre, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Selangor, Kampus Puncak Alam, 42300 Puncak Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.
J Herb Med. 2023 Jun;39:100650. doi: 10.1016/j.hermed.2023.100650. Epub 2023 Mar 22.
The spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) may lead people to seek preventative measures. The use of herbal and dietary supplements (HDS) may have become prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to identify the prevalence, predictors, and patterns of HDS use for COVID-19 prevention in a sample of the general public in a suburban town in Malaysia.
An online cross-sectional survey was conducted between May and June 2021 involving adults ≥ 18 years old. Data on the self-reported use of HDS for COVID-19 prevention were collected. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the predictors of HDS use.
Overall, 41.9 % (168/401) reported using HDS to prevent COVID-19. Multivariate analysis showed that HDS users were more likely to be individuals ≥ 40 years old (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.774, 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 1.016 - 3.098), and to have had a history of HDS use prior to the pandemic (aOR = 19.378, 95 % CI = 5.901 - 63.639). Most HDS users referred to social media or websites (66.7 %, 112/168) for HDS information. Approximately half of them had consulted either pharmacists or doctors about their HDS use.
HDS use to prevent COVID-19 was common among the respondents. Several issues - such as the concurrent use of HDS with conventional medications, the use of unreliable sources of information, and the lack of consultation with healthcare providers (HCPs) - indicate that HCPs should be more proactive in their consultative and information-providing roles regarding HDS use.
新型冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的传播可能会促使人们寻求预防措施。在COVID-19大流行期间，草药和膳食补充剂（HDS）的使用可能变得普遍。本研究旨在确定马来西亚一个郊区城镇普通公众样本中用于预防COVID-19的HDS使用情况、预测因素和模式。
2021年5月至6月期间进行了一项在线横断面调查，涉及18岁及以上的成年人。收集了关于自我报告的用于预防COVID-19的HDS使用数据。进行逻辑回归分析以确定HDS使用的预测因素。
总体而言，41.9%（168/401）的人报告使用HDS预防COVID-19。多变量分析表明，HDS使用者更有可能是40岁及以上的人（调整后的优势比[aOR]=1.774，95%置信区间[CI]=1.016 - 3.098），并且在大流行之前有HDS使用史（aOR = 19.378，95% CI = 5.901 - 63.639）。大多数HDS使用者通过社交媒体或网站（66.7%，112/168）获取HDS信息。其中约一半的人就其HDS使用情况咨询过药剂师或医生。
在受访者中，使用HDS预防COVID-19的情况很常见。一些问题——如HDS与传统药物同时使用、使用不可靠的信息来源以及缺乏与医疗保健提供者（HCP）的咨询——表明HCP在关于HDS使用的咨询和信息提供方面应更加积极主动。
