Pharmacists' Personal and Family Use of Herbal /Natural Products

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http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/463118_7

DiscussionPharmacists' Personal and Family Use of H/NPs

Prevalence. Studies of various populations done since 1990 have shown H/NP use

ranging from 2.5% to 68.0%.[1-33] Our study showed Minnesota pharmacists' use of

H/NPs (53% personal use and 45% family use) to be as high as or higher than

rates reported for other groups of Americans. This result, together with the

high incidence (61.2%) of herbal product use reported by Harnack et al.[24] for

adults living in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area and the Ni et

al.[10] report of higher CAM use in the Midwest, suggest that Minnesota is an

area whose population is culturally more open to using CAM products.

 

A chronologic review of studies conducted over the last decade shows a definite

upward trend in the use of H/NPs among virtually all of the populations

examined.

 

Conclusion

The Minnesota pharmacists in our sample used H/NPs at rates comparable to those

of many, and higher than those of some, other surveyed groups. They also used

products similar to those reportedly used by other groups. Pharmacists working

in community/outpatient settings and pharmacists living in nonurban areas were

more likely to report H/NP use, whereas hospital pharmacists were more likely to

report that they had not used H/NPs. Pharmacists who suggested H/NPs to patients

were more likely to work in community pharmacy settings and to have used them

personally.

 

Our findings indicate that pharmacists are increasingly being used as

information sources on H/NPs. Still, pharmacists in our sample strongly desired

more information about these products. Pharmacists are very concerned about

product safety and the effectiveness of H/NPs. Most pharmacists felt the amount

of information available on and the level of government oversight of these

products were not adequate.

 

 

Acknowledgements

 

The authors acknowledge the generous assistance of Nancy A. Hardie, MPH, MS, of

the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, with data management and data

analysis software programs.

 

Funding Information

 

The authors declare no conflicts of interest or financial interests in any

product or service mentioned in this article, including grants, employment,

gifts, stock holdings, or honoraria.

 

Partial funding for this study was obtained through a graduate student thesis

scholarship provided by the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. The

University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy's Office of Outreach Education

provided the gift certificates included in the survey packets.

 

Reprint Address

 

Ronald S. Hadsall, PhD, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota, 7-159

Weaver-Densford Hall, 308 Harvard Street, SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455. Fax:

612-625-9931. E-mail: hadsa001.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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