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Zodwa Ngubo*from Embo, west of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal’s Ugu district is currently seven months pregnant. The 33-year-old drinks a herbal tonic, isihlambezo, daily as she believes it will help her avoid a caesarean-section delivery and any complications during childbirth.
She sought the mixture from a local woman, “Gogo Mdlalose”*, who isn’t a traditional healer, but is known for mixing isihlambezo in her community. When asked to disclose the ingredients used, Mdlalose declined, saying it’s a “family legacy”.
This isn’t Ngubo’s first time using isihlambezo prepared by Mdlalose. “She is well-regarded in our community. I’ve never experienced any complications before, which is why I returned to her for help after finding out that I was pregnant again,” Ngubo tells Health-e News.
Ngubo visited Mdlalose when she was six months along, since she was told that starting isihlambezo too early could harm the unborn baby.
“I don’t know the ingredients she uses to prepare it. But it works. I say this because I have given birth to all my children through natural delivery without any C-sections. Almost all the women I know who have used her isihlambezo have also experienced uncomplicated labour, and many of them delivered their children naturally,” Ngubo says, who has three children.
Widespread practise
The exact number of women who use traditional medicine during pregnancy is not known. But a survey done by researchers from the University of KwaZulu-Natal between September and December 2014 found that 33.7% or 101 of the 299 pregnant women they interviewed used isihlambezo.
At the Halley Scott clinic in Botha’s Hill, Health-e News spoke to three pregnant women, two of whom shared that they are using isihlambezo.
Duduzile Xulu, 30, from KwaNyuswa, explains that she uses isihlambezo because she did the same during her first pregnancy.
“However, my remedy isn’t made from muthi or herbs; it is spiritual holy water that is typically given to pregnant women at church. They consume it to protect the foetus from evil spirits.”
Her sentiments echo recent research findings by researchers from the University of Zululand, who conducted in-depth interviews with women who use isihlambezo. Most of them expressed strong beliefs that the tonic would ensure faster and safer labour, as well as ward off evil spirits and protect mum and baby.
Health concerns
One major concern raised in the research is the possible side effects. A nurse practitioner from Unjani Clinic in Riverview, Zandile Khambule, says caution should be taken when using isihlambezo during pregnancy.
She says the widely-held belief that women who use traditional medicine during pregnancy will not have complications during labour, and that childbirth will be fast and easy, is not true.
“Instead, they are putting the baby at potential risk of foetal hypoxia due to poor oxygen supply to the brain, causing foetal distress and severe brain damage. The foetus can also ingest this medicine, leading to foetal death,” says Khambule.
According to the UniZulu study, the use of isihlambezo is associated with “induced heartburn, pre-mature labour, miscarriage, increased blood flow, abortion and allergic reactions during pregnancy. This could pose a danger to the pregnant woman and the foetus.”
Traditional remedies are ‘sidelined’
But traditional healers like Gogo Slungile Mtambo from Bhekulwandle in Amanzimtoti on the south coast of KZN, are pushing back. Mtambo argues that ‘isihlambezo has been used even before Western medicine arrived in Africa, it serves as a health tonic to promote a healthy pregnancy and facilitate uncomplicated labour and delivery, many pregnant women today continue to use it, and it’s effective’.
“Every medicine can cause harm if taken in excess. The problem is that many pregnant women tend to overdose on isihlambezo. You might advise someone to drink only one cup in the morning or evening, but then mothers-to-be often consume it excessively. This is why they sometimes experience complications,” Mtambo explains.
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Mdlalose agrees that traditional medicine is unfairly sidelined and criticised.
“Now that Western countries have come and colonised us, some believe we should abandon our culture, but I will not do that,” she says.
“What I know is that isihlambezo helps women in labour experience a quicker delivery, protects both the unborn baby and the mother from evil spirits, and most importantly, it can prevent a pregnant woman from needing a caesarean section.”
Need for more information
Khambule says women should be informed about the benefits and risks of using this medicine, as scientific studies on its safety are limited.
“There should be more healthcare outreach policies and guidelines addressing maternal health, including the use of Isihlambezo and other traditional medicine during pregnancy.” – Health-e News
*Not their real names
