Use of herbal remedies by Hispanic patients: do they inform their physician?
OBJECTIVE
This study measured the knowledge and use of herbs among Hispanics and assessed their experiences when discussing herb use with their physician.


METHODS
Self-administered questionnaires were collected from 620 Hispanic patients seeking treatment in urban health centers.


RESULTS
Most (80.3%) reported using herbs. Herb users were more comfortable speaking Spanish (91.9% vs 80.2%) and had been in the United States less than 5 years (47.0% vs 29.4%). More users considered herbs as drugs (60.5% vs 39.6%). Users were more aware that herbs could harm a baby if taken during pregnancy (56.4% vs 36.0%). The majority did not know the English name for 23 of the 25 herbs. A majority indicated their physician was unaware of their herb use. Few (17.4%) responded that their physicians asked about herb use. Only 41.6% thought their physician would understand their herb use, and 1.8% believed their physician would encourage continued use. There were no significant differences between herb users and nonusers in their perception of patient-physician communication levels.


CONCLUSIONS
Primary care physicians need to be aware that most Hispanic patients are likely to use herbs. It is important to initiate and encourage discussion of their patient's interest in and use of these therapies.
Howell
Laura
L
Cincinnati Children's Hospital, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Kochhar
Komal
K
Saywell
Robert
R
Zollinger
Terrell
T
Koehler
Julie
J
Mandzuk
Christina
C
Sutton
Brittany
B
Sevilla-Martir
Javier
J
Allen
Deborah
D
D000328:Adult; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D029001:Herbal Medicine; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D007196:Indiana; D008297:Male; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D014505:Urban Population