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ABSTRACT
Herbal products are used worldwide for the treatment and prevention of various diseases and currently represent a substantial proportion of the global drug market. However, because of the unhygienic handling, processing, and packaging procedures, these items run the risk of being contaminated by various bacteria. The main aim of this study was to assess the microbial quality of herbal products marketed to the general population around Ugbowo-Uselu market axis in Benin city, Edo state, Nigeria. Fifty (50) different herbal products were purchased from three different locations in the study area. Total bacteria count was done on all samples using the spread plate method. The samples were then cultured on Nutrient agar and MacConkey agar and incubated at 37ºC for 24 hours. The isolate obtained were subjected to Gram staining and biochemical tests for identification. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was done on all isolates using Gentamycin, Piperacillin, Meropenem and Cefoxitin. Bacterial contamination was observed in 40% of total sample. Bacteria belonging to seven genera were isolated and they included Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Proteus mirabilis, Enterobacter spp. and Citrobacter spp. The most contaminated sample (12.6 × 108 CFU/ml) was gotten from Uselu market while the least contaminated (2.8×104 CFU/ml) was from Adolor. Chi square test showed that there was a significant relationship between alcohol and presence of bacteria. All isolates tested were susceptible to Meropenem. The highest resistance was seen in Piperacillin with 6 (30%) isolates being resistant to it. Four (20%) isolates were resistant to Cefoxitin while just 1 (5%) was resistant to Gentamycin. Multidrug resistance was observed in 3 (15%) of the isolates that were resistant to 2 out of the 4 Antibiotics used. These findings imply that conditions during harvest or postharvest processing and preparation of herbal products were unsanitary. Proper handling and storage of herbs should be observed in order to reduce the number of microbial contaminants and also, emphasis on improvement of plant material quality and establishing better hygienic conditions during production of herbal medicines is recommended.
