Assessment of the Haematological Parameters of Polyherbal Drinks( Agbo, Alcoholic Bitters) Consumers in Nnewi Metropolis, Anambra State.

ABSTRACT
The use of herbs which is an age-old practice and dated back to ancient times is widely accepted
and embraced in many developed countries as a form of complementary and alternative
medicine. In the Nigerian healthcare system, there is significant issue with the excessive use of
these herbal medications including packaged combinations of various herbs commonly sold as
“bitters” whose examples include Agbo, washing and setting Agbo, Action bitters, Orijin bitters,
etc. Although these bitters are often thought to have multiple health advantages, some of the so-
called “health promoting bitters” currently existing have been linked to an increased risk of
health issues like chronic heart, liver, kidney, pancreatic diseases and even sudden death. This
study was carried out with the aim of assessing the haematological parameters of polyherbal
drinks consumers in Nnewi and evaluating its effects on blood count. A total of 100 subjects
were recruited through random sampling comprising of 50 habitual polyherbal drinks consumers
and 50 control subjects. Three ml of blood was collected from the participants by vein puncture
into EDTA container and full blood count was carried out using Sysmex autoanalyzer (model
XN—9100). The statistical package for social science version 22 was used for the analysis. The
results from this study shows that the mean values of WBC, NEU, LYM, RBC, HGB, HCT,
PLT, PCT, P-LCC were significantly decreased(p