Herbal Drug Usage Habits of Patients Who Came to Balcalı Hospital of Çukurova University

Introduction: In recent years, herbal products or drugs have been used consciously or unconsciously in our country as well as all over the world. These irrational uses can have consequences until death, without threatening human health. Although herbal products or medicines have beneficial aspects, harmful effects can also arise if not used rationally.  The aim of the study to evaluate the herbal drug usage habits of patients who came to Balcali Hospital of Cukurova University. Material and Method: This study had a descriptive design and face-to-face survey method was used. The data consisted of questions evaluating herbal product / drug use habits. SPSS software was used for statistical analysis. Results: Of the survey respondents 66% were female, while 34% were male, and 38% of them were college/university graduates. In the case of influensa, colds or other illnesses, using rate of herbal remedies was 43% instead of going to a health facility. Reported herbal remedies include mint, lemon, thyme, herbal teas, fennel, chamomile, garlic, canton, lime and ginger. The most reported sources of information about herbal products or medicines, was the internet 44%. Conclusion: Many patients do not have enough knowledge about herbal medicines. When they arrive at the hospital they do not know that their doctor may interact with the drugs they will write recipes. It may be useful to inform the public about the effective, safe use of herbal products or medicines in order to minimize drug-plant interactions or potential side effects. Giris: Bitkisel urun veya ilaclar son yillarda tum dunyada oldugu gibi ulkemizde de bilincli veya bilincsizce kullanilmaktadir. Bu akilci olmayan kullanimlar sonucu insan sagligi tehdit altinda olup olumle bile sonuclanabilmektedir. Bitkisel urun veya ilaclarin faydali yonleri olmasina ragmen, rasyonel kullanilmadigi takdirde zararli etkiler ortaya cikabilmektedir. Bu calismada Cukurova Universitesi Balcali Hastanesi'ne gelen hastalarin bitkisel ilac kullanim aliskanliklarinin degerlendirilmesi amaclanmistir. Materyal ve Metod: Tanimlayici tipteki bu calismada, yuz yuze anket yontemi kullanildi. Veriler, sosyo-demografik ozellikler ve bitkisel urun/ilac kullanma aliskanliklarini degerlendiren sorulardan elde edildi. Verilerin analizinde SPSS paket programi kullanildi. Bulgular: Ankete katilanlarin %66’si kadin, %34’u erkek olup, %38’i oraninda universite mezunu idi. Grip, soguk alginligi veya diger hastaliklarda saglik kurulusuna gitmek yerine bitkisel tedaviyi denerim diyenlerin orani %43 idi. Bitkisel tedavi icin, nane, limon, kekik, bitkisel caylar, rezene, papatya, sarimsak, kantaron, ihlamur ve zencefil tercih edilmekteydi.  Bitkisel urun veya ilaclar hakkinda bilgi edinme kaynaklari soruldugunda en fazla %44 oraninda internet olarak yanitlanmisti. Sonuc: Bircok hasta bitkisel urun ve ilaclar konusunda yeterli bilgiye sahip degildir. Hastaneye geldiklerinde doktorlarinin yazacaklari ilaclarla etkilesme olabilecegini bilmemektedirler. Bitkisel urun veya ilaclarin etkin, guvenli kullanimi hakkinda, ilac-bitki etkilesmelerini veya potansiyel yan etkilerini en aza indirmek amaciyla halkin bilgilendirilmesi yararli olabilir.