---
license: cc-by-4.0
task_categories:
- tabular-classification
language:
- en
tags:
- substandard-falsified-medicines
- herbal-medicine
- traditional-medicine
- contamination
- adulteration
- synthetic
- sub-saharan-africa
pretty_name: Herbal & Traditional Medicine Safety (SSA)
size_categories:
- 10K<n<100K
configs:
- config_name: traditional_healer_practice
  data_files: data/herbal_traditional_healer.csv
  default: true
- config_name: herbal_retail_market
  data_files: data/herbal_retail_market.csv
- config_name: hospital_herb_drug_interaction
  data_files: data/herbal_hospital_interaction.csv
data_type: synthetic
---

> ⚠️ **Synthetic dataset** — Parameterized from published SSA literature, not real observations. Not suitable for empirical analysis or policy inference.

# Herbal & Traditional Medicine Safety in Sub-Saharan Africa

## Abstract

Synthetic dataset modelling herbal/traditional medicine safety including contamination, adulteration, herb-drug interactions, and health outcomes across three settings in SSA. ~80% of Africans use traditional medicine; heavy metal contamination, microbial hazards, and adulteration with synthetic drugs are major safety concerns.

## Parameterization Evidence

| Parameter | Value | Source | Year |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Heavy metal contamination (Pb, Cd, Hg, As) in herbals | Contamination | Frontiers Pharmacol | 2020 |
| Adulteration with synthetic drugs, pesticides, microbes | Adulteration | IntechOpen | 2018 |
| Microbial and heavy metal contamination review | Safety | BMC Complement Med | 2023 |
| Agranulocytosis, meningitis, multi-organ failure | Harm | PubMed 22843016 | 2012 |

## Validation

![Validation Report](validation_report.png)

## Usage

```python
from datasets import load_dataset
ds = load_dataset("electricsheepafrica/herbal-traditional-medicine-safety", "traditional_healer_practice")
```

## References

1. Frontiers Pharmacology. Heavy metal contamination in herbal medicines. 2020.
2. IntechOpen. Toxicity and safety of herbal medicines in Africa. 2018.
3. BMC Complement Med. Microbial and heavy metal contamination review. 2023.
4. PubMed 22843016. Contamination and adulteration of HMPs. 2012.

## Citation

```bibtex
@dataset{electricsheepafrica_herbal_traditional_medicine_safety_2025,
  title={Herbal and Traditional Medicine Safety in Sub-Saharan Africa},
  author={Electric Sheep Africa},
  year={2025},
  publisher={HuggingFace},
  url={https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/herbal-traditional-medicine-safety}
}
```

## License

CC-BY-4.0