Tanzania Journal of Agricultural Sciences (2017) Vol. 16 No. 1, 36-45
Premature deaths among diabetic people are common in developing countries probably due to late
diagnosis or poor adherence to use of diabetic medicine. This study aimed at assessing nutritional
status and use of alternative medicinefor the aim of looking at the association between nutritional
status and the use of alternative medications among diabetic patients at Mawenzi hospital.
A total of 119 diabetic patients were randomly selected using a table of random numbers. The
weights and heights were measured using standard procedures and BMI was computed and used
to categorize participants into underweight, overweight, obese and normal status according to
WHO standards. The collected data was processed and analyzedusing Statistical Product and
Service Solutions (SPSS Inc.) version 20. Mean age of the diabetic patients was 58 years out of
whom 77% were females. Mean BMI was 26kg/m2, majority being overweight or obese (58%)
and very few (4.2%), were underweight. The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes (T2D) was associated
with age above 45 years compared to younger age. About 79% of respondents had diabetic
complications and the most common problems were hypertension, vision and pain in the lower
limbs. Majority of respondents (73%) used medication provided at the clinic together with diabetic
recipe to control blood glucose level. Only 21% reported to use traditional medicine from parts
of plants such as drumstick tree (Moringa oleifera) and or java plum tree (Syzygium cuminii).
About 45% of the respondents skipped some days without taking their prescribed medicines. There
was no any association between uses of traditional medicines with any of the socio-demographic
characteristics, family history of diabetes, diabetes complications or BMI of the diabetic patients.
There was high prevalence of overweight and obesity among type 2 diabetic adults. Some of the
patients used traditional medicines in addition to diabetic medicine provided at the clinic. Further
research is needed on the weight reduction interventions among diabetic patients and among
general population and on the composition and dose of the used traditional medicines.