• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.3593-3601
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• 2013

Background: For a number of reasons from cultural compatibility, to accessibility, to cost, traditional healers are a major source of health care in developing countries. In Malaysia, it's been estimated that upwards of 80% of the population consult traditional healers even if simultaneously seeking treatment from the Western medical system. Partially as a result of the widespread practice of visiting traditional healers, cancer diagnosis and treatment in Malaysia is often delayed or interrupted resulting in late presentation, advanced stage diagnosis, and a higher mortality rate than in Western countries. However, there is very little research on the role of traditional healers in cancer treatment in Malaysia. Materials and Methods: This qualitative study was designed to identify the roles traditional healers play in cancer diagnosis and treatment, with an eye to alleviating the cancer burden through educational responses with four publics in mind-policy makers, Western medical personnel, traditional healers, and the general public. In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 Malay traditional healers, 13 cancer survivors who had seen both traditional healers and Western doctors, and 12 cancer medical specialists. Results: Analysis of the data from these 39 participants revealed four roles traditional healers play in cancer treatment-medicinal healer, emotional comforter, spiritual guide, and palliative caregiver. Conclusions: Three roles (emotional, spiritual, palliative) can be seen as complementary to the allopathic system. Emotional and spiritual roles may augment the effectiveness of biomedical treatment. Cancer awareness and education programs need to position traditional healers as complementary, rather than an alternative to Western medical treatment; Validating the roles Traditional Healers can play in cancer treatment in MY through health promotion and education will contribute to alleviating the nation's cancer burden.

• CELLMED
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.9.1-9.6
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• 2016

Traditional healers in Ghana are so near to the health needs and aspirations of the majority of people who live mostly in the rural areas, yet have been excluded from the formal health care delivery system. Medical systems in Africa and around the globe have broad-ranging ties to the cosmology and the way of life of a people. However, in Ghana, colonialism and external orientation have had a negative influence on Traditional Medicine (TRM). Thus, in Ghana, Traditional healers can be described as a marginalized group and yet their roles in effective delivery of primary and mental health care cannot be overemphasized. This paper elucidates advocacy work toward medical pluralism in Ghana. First, the influence of colonialism on TRM is briefly examined, followed by highlights on advocacy work intended to include TRM in the health care system. Based on "small wins", challenges, successes, and prospects of our advocacy are discussed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.3841-3850
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• 2012

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the knowledge and perceptions of Malaysian tradition healers towards cancer and cancer prevention. Methodology: A total of 25 participants agreed to participate in this qualitative study during the period from $20^{th}$ July 2011 until $24^{th}$ of September 2011. The proposal of this study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Management and Science University (MSU). Once the participant agreed to be interviewed, date, time and place of the interviews were determined. Consent form was obtained from participants before the interview began. Participants were briefed about the study and its purpose, and after asking their permissions, their replies were recorded. The data was organized into themes and analyzed manually. Results: Twenty-five Malaysian traditional healers participated in this qualitative study. The age of participants ranged between 26 to 78 years old. The majority were in the age group of 31-60 years old, male, Chinese, degree holders with a monthly income ranging from 1,000-5,000 Ringgit Malaysia (RM) and were married (56%, 80%, 48%, 52%, 68%, 84% respectively). The majority defined cancer as having high cholesterol or abscess accumulation. A few of them defined cancer as a type of cell growth. The majority mentioned that food and unhealthy lifestyles are the primary causes of cancer. Surprisingly some of them mentioned that cancer is caused by interference by ghosts. Regarding the diagnosis of cancer, the majority mentioned that they refer their patients to modern physicians' medical report when it comes to diagnosing or treating patients with cancer. The most common cancers that many patients came to seek treatment were breast cancers, followed by colon cancers, liver and lung cancers. Conclusions: Despite good knowledgeabout the causes of cancer among traditional healers, misconceptions still exist. Insufficient knowledge about the definition of cancer was noted among the traditional healers. This urges immediate action by the Ministry of Health of Malaysia to set up a strict regulation and regular monitoring of the traditional healers nationally. Traditional and Complementary Medicine may be integrated into the healthcare system and need to have sustained cooperation for the benefit of patients since about 80% of patients use traditional medicines.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.25
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• pp.131-158
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• 2011

In the Sakha(Yakutia) Republic, culture and politics continue to be interwined. Shamanism recently has come out of hiding after Soviet repression, and into fashion. Images of the shaman are changing in villages, where traditional healers have maintained their practices in difficult conditions, and in cities, where a resurgence of spirit belief and healing has led to the revitalization of their nationalism. Shamans and folk healers manipulate their own images, and in turn are changed by the upheavals of politicized cultural revitalization. In this complex and interactive context, folklore about traditional shamans has become especially rich and accessible. I argue here that religion has become an idiom through which competing definitions of homeland and national pride are being shaped. Until September 2002, Yakutsk had never had a 'temple' devoted to the practice of traditional shamanic beliefs. Indeed the whole concept that a building 'Archie Jiete' could contain or represent the beliefs, values and rituals of the Sakha people was new, and highly controversial.

• CELLMED
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.10.1-10.10
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• 2017

The Maasai community from Kenya is highly esteemed for their strong adherence to traditional cultures and ethno medicine. This is attributed to their age-old traditional mechanisms of passing down knowledge to the younger generation. Adoption to new socio-economic lifestyle and urbanization has been associated with development of diabetes, which has been reported among some indigenous pastoral communities in Kenya. Documentation of traditional methods of treatment and management of diabetes by the Maasai has not yet been reported, yet it is noteworthy. Thirty traditional healers from Narok County were purposively selected and interviewed about traditional knowledge of antidiabetic medicinal plants, parts used, preparation dosage and administration. A total of 14 antidiabetic plant species distributed within 13 genera and 12 families were identified and documented as herbal medicine used in the management of diabetes. The most highly cited plant species was Dovyalis abyssinica (20%), the plant family Flacourtiaceae and Rhamnaceae (2 plant species each) recorded the highest number of plant species while the most frequently used plant part was the roots (46%). Literature review revealed that some of the cited plants have known phytochemicals with antidiabetic activity; the study recommends further scientific investigation to validate their efficacy and safety.

• CELLMED
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.1.1-1.6
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• 2012

A spiritual sense may be present in the human brain. Demonstration of the spiritual sense depends on measuring the behavioral effects of spiritual experiences. These experiences can be induced by prayer, specific chemicals and other stimuli that are known to interact with pyramidal neurons of layer 5 in the cerebral cortex. This work examines the hypothesis that pyramidal neurons are the seat of the spiritual sense. Healers use the spiritual sense to comfort and heal their patients, especially with prayer. Many doctors do not encourage prayer and could learn from healers to use the spiritual sense. Patients should be educated to use prayer in order to get the comfort they need for healing.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.33-37
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• 2011

The plant species reported here are used by traditional healers in Gabon for different ailments such as wounds, malaria, fever, gonorrhea or diarrhea. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activities of 7 plants (Strombosiopsis tetrandra, Tetraberlinia bifoliolata, Dichapetalum barbatum, Guibourtia demeusii, Dacryodes normandii, Manniophytum fulvum, Paropsia grewoides) against different strains of both Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Salmonella. Disc diffusion was first used to determine the antimicrobial effectiveness of the plants' ethanolic extracts. Then the minimum inhibitory concentrations of the crude extracts of either leaves or stem barks of the 7 plants were determined using broth micro-dilution. The ethanolic plant extracts showed very good activity against both MRSA and Salmonella strains where the MICs ranged from $250\;{\mu}g/ml$ to $1000\;{\mu}g/ml$. The study shows that many of the tested plants used by Gabonese traditional healers have antimicrobial activities and give support to their traditional use.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.217-227
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• 2021

This study is a record of ethnomedicinal knowledge in Begumganj province focussed on medicinal plants and their local uses for primary health care. The aim was to document and preserve the ethnomedicinal knowledge used by traditional healers of Begumganj upazila, Bangladesh, to treat human diseases and evaluate the relative efficacy of the medicinal plants. The uses of medicinal plants were documented as an ethnomedicinal data sheet using direct observation, field interview, plant interview and group interview techniques from December 2012 to January 2014 in the study area. Data were collected from 98 traditional healers through a questionnaire survey and analyzed through informant consensus factor and fidelity level. This study revealed comprehensive relationship among various diseases and families, forms and parts of plants and modes of preparation. Overall, 75 plant species under 71 genera of 47 families were documented, which are used to treat 41 diseases. Data analysis revealed that 41.33%, 14.67%, 36% and 8% of the medicinal plant species were herbs, shrubs, trees, and climbers, respectively. Leaves were the most used parts, followed by stem, root, fruit, bark, latex and rhizome. The most frequently treated diseases were dysentery, rheumatism and skin diseases. This is the first ethnobotanical survey, which recorded the importance of medicinal plants in Begumganj upazila, Bangladesh. This study can contribute to preserving the indigenous knowledge on the traditional use of medicinal plants in this region and new drug development with attracting future generations towards traditional healing practice.

• CELLMED
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.4.1-4.13
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• 2012

When medicine is unable to cure, and the end becomes imminent, or when the patient is tired of the side effects associated with chronic use of drugs, the search for alternative and new ways of healing is begun. Coincidentally, sometimes the alternative is the origin, as is the case for traditional Arab medicine and traditional American Indian healing. Traditional healing is the first healing that all people have used for 200,000 years, since the beginning of Homo sapiens. The sources and elements of traditional Arab medicine have been examined in books and by consulting with traditional Arab healers. Arabic medicine is a career combining both elements of science and philosophy based on religion and traditions, and includes a diversity of healing approaches: spiritual, physical, and using natural products. These approaches are discussed with emphasis on wet cupping (Alhijamah), a practice that is undergoing a revival nowadays in Arab countries. American Indian healing is a career based on religion, tradition, an innate healing gift and extensive training, both in a medical school setting and as an apprentice. Arabic healing approaches are compared to American Indian healing approaches.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.183-187
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• 2022

The current Covid-19 pandemic has changed the entire world and bought so many unprecedented challenges to the scientific community. More than 5 million people died due to the SARS-COV-2 outbreak. For many thousands of years, ginseng, the traditional herb has been used for various infectious diseases by traditional healers. Ginseng showed promising antiviral effects by modulating both natural and acquired immunity. Ginseng might be used as a potential therapeutic agent to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection along with the vaccine. In this current review, we offer an alternative approach for SARS-COV-2 prevention during this unprecedented pandemic.