Perception of traditional and alternative medicine practitioners regarding the risks of Abrus precatorius use in Muchache-Massinga, Mozambique
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v15i5.50957Keywords:
Abrus precatorius, Traditional Medicine, Risk Perception, Mozambique.Abstract
Background and Aim: In Mozambique, approximately 70% of the population relies on traditional medicine for primary healthcare. Abrus precatorius is widely used by Traditional and Alternative Medicine Practitioners to treat epilepsy and menstrual irregularities, despite containing abrin, one of the most lethal toxins known. This study aimed to assess the risk perception of TAMPs regarding the medicinal use of A. precatorius in Mozambique. Methodology: A cross-sectional mixed-methods study was conducted. A sample of 148 TAMPs was selected via non-probability convenience sampling. Quantitative data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 25, applying descriptive statistical methods. Results: The mean age of participants was 49.6 years. The sociodemographic profile revealed a predominantly older population (72% aged ≥55 years), female (56%), and with low levels of formal education (38% with no formal schooling). A high prevalence of reported adverse reactions was observed, including constipation (95.3%), fainting (89.9%), nausea (84.5%), and miscarriage (45.3%). Knowledge transmission is governed by a healing mystique, in which efficacy is validated through family traditions and spiritual revelations. A marked “terminological blindness” was identified, whereby practitioners recognize the physical potency of the seeds however lack awareness of the biochemical nature of abrin. Conclusions: The medicinal use of A. precatorius in Muchache represents a critical public health risk rooted in the tension between ancestral traditions and clinical safety. The reliance on spiritual validation obscures the lethal nature of abrin, leading to a selective interpretation of toxic side effects as therapeutic success.
References
Alfred, M. (2024). Ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacology of Pse. Journal of Medicinalplants for Economicdevelopment, 8, 9.
Almeida, J. d. S., Do Nascimento, S. B., Cardoso, J. A., Braga Vasconcelos, A. M., Machado, D. G., & Libório Dourado, G. d. O. (2018). A Fitoterapia no Centro de Saúde da Família: Um olhar sobre Práticas Integrativas no VER-SUS. Saúde em Redes, 4(1), 193–204.
https://doi.org/10.18310/2446-4813.2018v4n1p193-204
Awodele, O., & Osuolale, J. A. (2015). Medication adherence in type 2 diabetes patients: study of patients in Alimosho General Hospital, Igando, Lagos, Nigeria. Afr Health Sci, 15(2), 513–522. https://doi.org/10.4314/ahs.v15i2.26
Balogun, F. O., & Ashafa, A. O. T. (2019). A Review of Plants Used in South African Traditional Medicine for the Management and Treatment of Hypertension. Planta Med, 85(4), 312–334. https://doi.org/10.1055/a-0801-8771
Barbosa, F., Hlashwayo, D., Sevastyanov, V., Chichava, V., Mataveia, A., Boane, E., & Cala, A. (2020). Medicinal plants sold for treatment of bacterial and parasitic diseases in humans in Maputo city markets, Mozambique. BMC Complement Med Ther, 20(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-019-2809-9
Beyer, J., Drummer, O. H., & Maurer, H. H. (2009). Analysis of toxic alkaloids in body samples. Forensic Sci Int, 185(1-3), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2008.12.006
Brahmi, F., Kampemba Mujinga, F., Guendouze, N., Madani, K., Boulekbache, L., & Duez, P. (2025). Benefits of Traditional Medicinal Plants to African Women's Health: An Overview of the Literature. Diseases, 13(5). https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases13050160
Bruschi, P., Morganti, M., Mancini, M., & Signorini, M. A. (2011). Traditional healers and laypeople: a qualitative and quantitative approach to local knowledge on medicinal plants in Muda (Mozambique). J Ethnopharmacol, 138(2), 543–563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2011.09.055
Chinsembu, K. C. (2016). Ethnobotanical Study of Plants Used in the Management of HIV/AIDS-Related Diseases in Livingstone, Southern Province, Zambia. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med, 2016, 4238625. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/4238625
Hansen, M., O'Brien, K., Meckler, G., Chang, A. M., & Guise, J. M. (2016). Understanding the value of mixed methods research: the Children's Safety Initiative-Emergency Medical Services. Emerg Med J, 33(7), 489–494. https://doi.org/10.1136/emermed-2015-205277
Jozane, T. (2020). Desafios para regulamentação das práticas da medicina tradicional e alternativa no sistema nacional de saúde em Moçambique Universidade Eduardo Mondlane]. Mozambique.
Khumalo, G. P., Van Wyk, B. E., Feng, Y., & Cock, I. E. (2022). A review of the traditional use of southern African medicinal plants for the treatment of inflammation and inflammatory pain. J Ethnopharmacol, 283, 114436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2021.114436
Kidane, L., Gebremedhin, G., & Beyene, T. (2018). Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in Ganta Afeshum District, Eastern Zone of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed, 14(1), 64. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-018-0266-z
Kudzinesta, M., Mubita, M., Kalemeera, F., Godman, B., Hango, E., & Kibuule, D. (2020). Utility of medicines information leaflets in hypertensive care in a setting with low health literacy: A cross-sectional study. Med Access Point Care, 4, 2399202620910031. https://doi.org/10.1177/2399202620910031
Lindsay-Smith, G., Eime, R., O'Sullivan, G., Harvey, J., & van Uffelen, J. G. Z. (2019). A mixed-methods case study exploring the impact of participation in community activity groups for older adults on physical activity, health and wellbeing. BMC Geriatr, 19(1), 243. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-019-1245-5
Mahomoodally, M. F. (2013). Traditional medicines in Africa: an appraisal of ten potent african medicinal plants. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med, 2013, 617459. https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/617459
Manuel, L., Bechel, A., Noormahomed, E. V., Hlashwayo, D. F., & Madureira, M. D. C. (2020). Ethnobotanical study of plants used by the traditional healers to treat malaria in Mogovolas district, northern Mozambique. Heliyon, 6(12), e05746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05746
Marshall, G., & Jonker, L. (2010). An introduction to descriptive statistics: A review and practical guide. Radiography, 16(4), e1–e7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2010.01.001
Martin Ikhoyameh, W. E. O., Ruth Mosunmola Ogboye, Olaitan Kayode Owoyemi, Ololade Samson Gbadebo. (2024). Integrating traditional medicine into the African healthcare system post-Traditional Medicine Global Summit: challenges and recommendations. Pan Afr Med J, 6.
Ndhlala, A. R., Ncube, B., Okem, A., Mulaudzi, R. B., & Van Staden, J. (2013). Toxicology of some important medicinal plants in southern Africa. Food Chem Toxicol, 62, 609–621. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2013.09.027
Perez-Vicente, S., & Exposito Ruiz, M. (2009). Descriptive statistics. Allergol Immunopathol (Madr), 37(6), 314–320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aller.2009.10.005
Razão, E. H., Sánchez, M., Naval, M. V., Gavilán, R. G., & Gómez-Serranillos, M. P. (2024). Biodiversity, Traditional Uses, and Pharmacological Potential of Medicinal Plants of Mozambique. Agriculture, 14(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14122204
Reddy Palvai, V., Mahalingu, S., & Urooj, A. (2014). Abrus precatorius Leaves: Antioxidant Activity in Food and Biological Systems, pH, and Temperature Stability. Int J Med Chem, 2014, 748549. https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/748549
Risemberg, R. I. C., Wakin, M., & Shitsuka, R. (2026). A importância da metodologia científica no desenvolvimento de artigos científicos. E-Acadêmica, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.52076/eacad-v7i1.675
Senkoro, A. M., Shackleton, C. M., Voeks, R. A., & Ribeiro, A. I. (2019). Uses, Knowledge, and Management of the Threatened Pepper-Bark Tree (Warburgia salutaris) in Southern Mozambique. Economic Botany, 73(3), 304–324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-019-09468-x
Shazia Tabasum, S. K. A. K. J. (2018). Establishment of Quality Standards of Abrus precatorius Linn. Seed. Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 6.
Sitoe, E., & Van Wyk, B. E. (2024). An inventory and analysis of the medicinal plants of Mozambique. J Ethnopharmacol, 319(Pt 2), 117137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2023.117137
Umamahesh, B., & Veeresham, C. (2016). Antihyperglycemic and Insulin Secretagogue Activities of Abrus precatorius Leaf Extract. Pharmacognosy Res, 8(4), 303–308. https://doi.org/10.4103/0974-8490.188881
Van Wyk, B. E. (2015). A review of commercially important African medicinal plants. J Ethnopharmacol, 176, 118–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2015.10.031
WHO. (2022). Global strategies and plans of action that are scheduled to expire within one year WHO traditional medicine strategy: 2014–2023.
Williams, V. L., Victor, J. E., & Crouch, N. R. (2013). Red Listed medicinal plants of South Africa: Status, trends, and assessment challenges. South African Journal of Botany, 86, 23–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2013.01.006
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Osvaldo Bernardo Muchanga, Sheila Elias Macuácua, Egas Bernardo Muchanga, Whitney Danilo Chigoi, Inocêncio Muchanga, Agrácio Cumbe, Alfredo Muchanga, Emídio Dique, Hilário Massango, Amâncio Nhangave, Izaidino Muchanga, Alina Ferrera Gonzalez, Mércia Sulumundine Inroga, Mónica Inroga Samaja
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
1) Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
2) Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
3) Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
