The Youth in Kabale district are abusing Artemisia annua, a plant used for making anti-malarial drugs.
Doctors in Kabale have observed that an increasing number of young men become drunk and violent after chewing Artemisia leaves.
"This is a looming bomb," Dr. Ronald Kayaba, said at a workshop on human rights at Lake View Resort Hotel in Mbarara recently. "Many youth are being rehabilitated as addicts."
Kayaba said the Police had been told about the health-threatening habit.However, psychiatrists at Butabika Mental Hospital suspect that the victims could either be consuming marijuana or cannabis. He added that they may be mixing the two with Artemisia leaves.
"I have read literature about Artemisia annua and consulted malaria experts, but they have found no such effects about the drug," said Dr. Margaret Mungherera, a consultant psychiatrist.
The sweet wormwood plant, whose leaves resemble those of marijuana, has been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine to treat fever.
It is currently processed by pharmaceuticals for the production of artemisinin, an active ingredient for Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACTs) in the treatment of malaria.
Animal studies in China revealed that excessive consumption of artemisinin could lead to neurological damage. In addition, using high doses of artemisinin caused liver inflammation in animals and humans.
However, the human dosage capable of causing this kind of reaction is 10 times the therapeutic dose, given for three days.
ACTs are highly effective and well-tolerated anti-malarials.
They are usually used for the treatment of acute uncomplicated falciparum malaria, the most dangerous form of malaria.
In Uganda, the crop is being grown on the commercial scale in several districts. A kilogramme of leaves and flowers costs sh2,000.
....young men become drunk and violent after chewing Artemisia leaves....[so] psychiatrists at Butabika Mental Hospital suspect that the victims could either be consuming marijuana or cannabis. He added that they may be mixing the two with Artemisia leaves.
17-10-2007, 04:44
I wonder if this all media fabrication?
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