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Abuja, Nigeria Oke Bola thought that a fertility supplement she found online would help her get pregnant. In fact, within days of taking the drug, he had trouble breathing. His experience reflects a growing online business in unproven drugs promoted on social media.
Bola (not her real name), who is in her 40s and has never had children, said that she bought a supplement earlier this year and increased the recommended dose, hoping for quick results after hearing about it from friends and family.
“I recognized the symptoms of asthma; the sound of breathing at night was noticeable,” he told Al Jazeera. “After looking it up on the internet, I realized it could be from herbal remedies.”
Bola said her symptoms subsided after she stopped taking the drug. Without consulting a doctor, he decided that what he did was connected to the wrong dose and resumed using it as directed.
This medicine, Jinja Herbal Mixture, is marketed for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.
A 2025 Nigerian study, titled The Toxicological Evaluation of Jinja: A Local Herbal Mixture (LHM), found that it appears to be safe for short-term use in tested, therapeutic doses. But the researchers also recorded biochemical changes at high levels, including changes in creatinine and sodium in the measured levels, indicators of kidney function and liver stress.
The study called for more research on long-term effects and interactions with common medications.
Another user, Temi Ahondiwura, 47, a graduate of the University of Ibadan, said herbal eye treatment bought through Facebook worsened her eyesight. This is the first time such a drug has been tested.
Marketed by social activists, the drug claims to cure many eye diseases.
“At first, I felt itchy, but I thought it was part of the process,” he told Al Jazeera. “When it continued, I stopped and went back to my glasses.”
Stories like this are increasing, according to pharmacist Akinade Akinlolu and Dr Egemba Chinonso Fidelis.
On the screen of a mobile phone, relief is just a click away: exercises, eye drops that promise recovery, drugs that claim to “remove” disease. Ads are polished, engaging and consistent, linked to TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X feed.
Across Nigeria, doctors and pharmacists say the proliferation of self-medication, especially involving unproven herbal medicines, is increasing health outcomes, delaying treatment and adding pressure to already difficult conditions. Rising costs of care, shortages of medical equipment and the migration of health workers abroad have also weakened the health system for about 230 million people.
Nigeria’s young, highly connected people use digital platforms for health information and advice. But that opportunity has also created what Dr Isaac Kolawole and Dr Fidelis describe as the “algorithmic apothecary”, an unregulated social network where concerned people and anonymous sellers promote cures directly to consumers without scientific support.
The dangers of online marketing
A report by Surjen Healthcare, a door-to-door healthcare platform, links the rise of self-service medicine in Nigeria to easy access to health information online. Many people, driven by high costs and mistrust of healthcare, now turn to social media for advice, sometimes with harmful results.
The report links this trend to a rise in drug resistance, late hospitalizations and an increase in inappropriate or fraudulent products. At the same time, Nigeria’s herbal medicine market continues to grow, but weak online enforcement has allowed unproven products to spread widely.
The 2025 survey shows that most Nigerians are open to traditional medicine delivered through digital platforms, often shaped by promotional content. It found that 68 percent of the patients surveyed were willing to consult with physicians online, while 42 percent of physicians are aware of such platforms, but only 19 percent actually use them. About 60 percent said they were willing to adopt them.
“Platforms that scale this up,” Fidelis said. “Their algorithms pay for what they’re doing and post it to the masses,” he told Al Jazeera.
Even users who try to avoid such things often face them repeatedly, made up of emotional stories, music and fast-paced messages.
Health effects
Within this environment, herbal medicine, which is part of Nigerian medicine and culture, is being added as a miracle cure, sometimes with dangerous side effects.
Doctors say many patients only come to the hospital when their condition worsens, often after long-term use of unproven drugs.
A nephrologist at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Dr Yemi Raji, said herbal medicine continues to play a role in kidney disease in Nigeria.
Although some herbal medicines may be beneficial, he said, many contain chemicals that can cause serious harm or long-term use.
“When you take herbal medicine, you’re taking the good and the bad,” he said, noting that 5-7 percent of his patients fall into this category. “Patients often arrive late, when treatment is difficult and expensive,” he told Al Jazeera.
Dialysis alone, he said, can cost between 50,000 and 100,000 naira ($36-72) per session, several times a week.
“I advise against drugs that have not been approved by NAFDAC,” he said. If you are sick, go to the hospital.
Raji and Fidelis, doctors, said that herbal medicine is still widely used because it is cheap and well known in the culture, especially in areas where there is no medical care. But he stressed that the combination of weak regulation and the expansion of the Internet drives new risks.
Akinlolu, a pharmacist in Ibadan, a major city in southwestern Nigeria, said many online sellers rely on predatory sales to gain credibility. He said that while diseases such as diabetes and hypertension can be controlled, the Internet’s claims often promote cures.
Economic stress, he added, is also forcing people to resort to cheaper or “miracle” alternatives.
Fidelis, a public health advocate known online as Aproko Doctor, said that herbal remedies show “credible health lies” that are given with certainty but lack evidence.
He said: “Real medicines don’t promise to cure anything, and they don’t rely on calculations. Scammers do.”
“These problems are not new,” he added. “What’s new is the marketing strategy.”
He also cited research on the use of herbs in kidney and liver disease across Africa, including findings that about 46 percent of liver disease patients at a Nigerian hospital involved herbs or roots.
A 2022 survey found that 76.65 percent of participants used herbal remedies. Many said they used it because they believed it was effective. More than one-third of herbal medicines are conventional, while 82.44 percent did not inform their doctors.
Fidelis said the problem has grown online, noting that hackers have also used AI-generated versions of his image to promote fake content.
“If there are no consequences for online medical falsification, people will continue,” he said.
Managers struggle to keep up
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) says it is working to track unregistered manufacturers, but enforcement is difficult, especially online.
NAFDAC South West Director, Isaac Kolawole, said many vendors use fake or incomplete addresses, making it difficult to trace them.
“With the amount of content on the Internet, the pressure is not reaching,” he told Al Jazeera.
NAFDAC requires strict registration, testing and approval of herbal medicines before they can be sold or advertised, but says the law is not working well with online sales.
Kolawole said the agency has taken action against non-compliant manufacturers, including fines, but stressed that the aim is to regulate, not repress.
“They’re partners in what’s going on,” he said.
Fidelis said that strict control alone is not enough. He said access to affordable healthcare needs to be improved, public trust needs to be rebuilt, and digital platforms need to be held accountable for what they develop.
As Nigeria’s digital economy grows, he warned, the convergence of technology and healthcare will only grow.
“Without strong security,” he said, “algorithmic apothecary will continue to grow and put more people at risk.”
