Macrobiotic or herbal supplements consumed by patients attended in a dental school

Abstract

Nowadays there is a major consumption of macrobiotic or herbal products. General population thinks that they are innocuous because they come from a plant and that they are highly effective in treating diseases or preventing them. The aim of this study was to determine which macrobiotic or herbal products were the patients treated at the Dentistry Faculty of the University of Costa Rica consuming. We interviewed 80 adult patients using a semi structured questionnaire divided in two parts, the former asks about the consumption of macrobiotic or herbal products and the knowledge about “natural remedies” from a list of common diseases and the second part questions the interviewee about their biographic data. The results show that 51% of the patients were consuming botanical products and there was no significant statistically association between the consumption with sex, age nor scholarship. However, it is recommended that dentists and physicians study this subject and ask about their use during the medical interview.