Assessment Of Adults’ Use Of Complementary And Alternative Medicine Methods And Their Healthy Dietary Habits During COVID-19

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the dietary habits of adult individuals and their status of using complementary and alternative medicine practices during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: In this cross-sectional and descriptive study, data was collected on general information about adult individuals, their status of using complementary and alternative medicine methods (CAMM), healthy eating habits, and their adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MEDAS) using an online questionnaire. The participants were asked if they knew about complementary and alternative medicine CAMM and two groups were formed based on their responses. The mean MEDAS score of those who stated that they were informed about CAMM (6.9±2.0) was higher than those who reported that they were not (6.5±1.8) (p<0.05). It was found out that 187 individuals who stated that they were informed about CAMM (46.6%) consumed three main meals, and 202 individuals who stated that they were not informed (61.6%) consumed two main meals (p<0.05). Among those who stated that they were informed about CAMM, 49.8% used herbal products, while 62.3% reported that they were not informed used herbal products (p> 0.05). It was observed that the majority of the two groups who stated they were and were not informed about CAMM used herbal products included in CAMM. Therefore, the results of the study emphasize the significance of consulting health experts before using CAMM and preventing their irrational use in order to curb health problems that might arise as a result of irrational use of CAMM.