How Africans fight Malaria

Posted by Felix Okoli on Tuesday September 1, 2015 at 16:23:55:

Malaria is a big problem in Africa and as at today, there are not yet any publicly available vaccines for the disease which normally spreads by mosquito bites into the blood stream of the victim. Africans normally make use of traditional as well as western medicines to help the body in fighting the disease which is a widespread killer. Yes, Malaria can kill even though the organism causing it is invincible to the human eye.

Some Africans fight Malaria by eating good food and exercising in order to boost their immune system because it's one's body that ultimately fights diseases irrespective of what drugs do. Some Africans are naturally immune to it and some catch it easily and it wears them down. They would normally have to take drugs before or after visiting a doctor but some avoid doctors and just take drugs.

Malaria is more successful in killing the very young and very old people and that's why young people aged 18 to 50 years form the major population in Africa. If Malaria was non existent in Africa, many people would live longer, even till 100 years and many babies would survive but it is really a big problem and causes a lot of complications when it's not detected and treated early.

In Nigeria for instance, people are allowed to take drugs over the counter when they suspect they have malaria and use it for at least 3 days before having to see a Medical Doctor if there are no improvements. Personally, for me, I have an ACT drug I use called P-Alaxin and it's really effective. There are actually a lot of Malaria drugs being imported to Africa from Asia and Europe and there are also people who use local medicine to treat their Malaria but the problem with local medicine is that there are no guarantees as to it's safety because standards of producing them are not well regulated. Most local healers are not well educated to bring their anti-malaria medicines to the required public standard and so govt agencies don't normally vouch for them although they may be a bit effective in fighting malaria and they have a lot of clients supporting them.

Many educated Africans however do prefer patronizing imported anti-malarial drugs and they can get this from local pharmacies and chemists that are approved. There are normally a lot of tv adverts and banners telling people how to fight malaria and so the knowledge about treatment of malaria is more open than other illnesses like hepatitis or HIV. Some people take drugs over the counter while some prefer visiting the Doctor for treatment.

Based on my experience, if one has fever, it's normally best to get drugs from a local pharmacy and take them for at least 3 days and if there are no improvements, then it's best to go see a Doctor afterwards for proper diagnosis. One also needs to eat good food, fruits and also have a lot of rest. When the body is sound, it will be more able to fight of the fever with the help of drugs.

Some Africans prefer taking imported anti-malarial drugs on a monthly or quarterly basis while some just prefer taking herbs or local drugs.

Malaria is a very deadly disease and many who have died include those who have been wrongly diagnoses at times by quack doctors and nurses. It has killed many people probably because they didn't know how to fight it.

There are many ways through which Africans fight Malaria and it includes using mosquito nets, using insecticides, keeping their environment clean, eating good food, doing exercise and also taking anti-malarial drugs. If there were something like a Malaria vaccine, it could help save a lot of lives in Africa.