Cancer: Herbal Practitioner Urges Return to Natural Foods, Warns Against Mixing Herbs

By Adeola Bankole

Alhaji Yusuf Yekeen Amuda advocates natural foods, indigenous knowledge and healthier lifestyles, but says cancer patients should avoid indiscriminate herbal mixtures

A traditionalist and herbal medicine practitioner, Alhaji Dr. Yusuf Yekeen Amuda, has called for a renewed appreciation of natural foods, indigenous medicinal knowledge and healthier lifestyles as part of efforts to confront the growing burden of cancer.

Speaking on what he described as the menace of cancer, Amuda maintained that cancer is not beyond healing and argued that the human body and the natural environment contain resources that can support health and healing.

 He, however, specifically warned against the indiscriminate combination of different herbs, saying such mixtures could complicate the condition of people already battling serious illnesses.

According to him, his traditional understanding is that there is a natural remedy associated with virtually every ailment, just as the human body has different needs at different times, food when hungry, water when thirsty and sleep when tired.

He said traditional knowledge handed down from previous generations was based largely on observing the body, food and the environment, noting that his forefathers were accustomed to responding to signs of illness early rather than allowing ailments to progress.

Amuda attributed some modern health challenges to changes in people’s diets, lifestyles and environment. He identified pollution, climate change, global warming and other forms of environmental degradation as factors that, in his view, may contribute to ill health and urged Nigerians to make conscious adjustments to their diets.

‘Go back to naturally ripened foods’

The practitioner particularly advocated the consumption of naturally ripened fruits and vegetables, arguing that people should reduce their dependence on unripe or artificially ripened produce.

He recalled that earlier generations consumed a wider variety of naturally produced and fermented foods and believed that such foods supported the body’s natural defence mechanisms.

Amuda also spoke about the difference between food consumption patterns in rural areas and cities. He argued that urbanisation and modern food distribution have changed what people eat, with city dwellers increasingly exposed to processed and commercially handled foods.

He called for greater attention to traditional foods such as locust beans and other naturally fermented foods, although he stressed the importance of food safety and proper preparation.

He further urged Nigerians to pay attention to what they eat and drink rather than consuming food without considering its possible effects on their health.

Amuda listed several Yoruba plant names traditionally associated with herbal medicine, including papa atan, ba lẹrẹ,  ba lẹrẹ  itakun, gbagi,  gbagi Itakun and ẹla.

However, these names should not automatically be treated as scientific plant , though the same local name can refer to different species in different communities. For example, ethnobotanical literature identifies Gbagi in one context as Eleusine indica, while sources give more than one botanical identification for

This distinction is important for anyone considering herbal treatment because a wrong plant identification can result in the use of an entirely different species.

Amuda said, from his traditional practice, some plants that grow naturally without deliberate cultivation are considered particularly valuable medicinal resources. He also claimed that some of the leaves he mentioned lose their potency after about 15 days.

He specifically mentioned what he called papa atan, describing it as a thorny leaf traditionally used by herbal practitioners for cancer. He also mentioned scent leaf, ewe  efínrín (Ocimum gratissimum), and she said it has traditional medicinal applications.

Ethnobotanical literature indeed records Ocimum gratissimum as a Yoruba medicinal plant, but traditional use should not be confused with clinical proof that it cures cancer.

The practitioner also mentioned ewe tete (Efo Tete), soursop leaves and lime leaves in dietary and herbal preparations for people living with cancer.

He advised against combining numerous herbal preparations indiscriminately, advocating instead what he described as the controlled use of individual plants or vegetables.

Amuda advised people diagnosed with cancer to begin by examining their lifestyle and dietary habits.

Among the changes he suggested were reducing certain processed foods, reconsidering the use of vegetable oil, paying greater attention to traditional foods and avoiding excessive reliance on packaged or sachet water.

He also advocated the traditional use of chewing sticks instead of modern toothbrushes and toothpaste.

He further advised people to avoid fear after receiving a diagnosis, arguing that excessive fear can worsen a person’s psychological state and affect overall wellbeing.

However, people diagnosed with cancer should not discontinue prescribed cancer treatment, replace medical care with herbs, or make major dietary or treatment changes without discussing them with qualified healthcare professionals.

‘Do not allow fear to take over’

Amuda’s main message was that people should not automatically interpret a cancer diagnosis as the end of life.

He argued that fear itself can become harmful and urged people to seek knowledge about their health instead of living in constant anxiety over symptoms or food choices.

He extended the advice to other diseases, including hepatitis B, maintaining that people should not regard any illness as hopeless.

He also recommended, as part of his traditional dietary advice, occasional consumption of pap mixed with squeezed lime.

While some of the practitioner’s recommendations reflect traditional beliefs and practices, cancer treatment requires proper diagnosis and evidence-based medical care. Natural foods can form part of a healthy diet, but there is currently no basis for presenting a particular leaf, fruit or vegetable as a proven cure for cancer.

The growing interest in medicinal plants nevertheless highlights the need for proper scientific identification, laboratory research, clinical trials and safe regulation of herbal preparations so that useful indigenous knowledge can be investigated without putting vulnerable patients at risk.