A survey on the treatment of GERD with aloe vera juice, slippery elm, ginger tea, and chamomile tea

Abstract

An online survey was conducted among 35 pharmacy students as part of a Drug Informatics mandatory 2-credit hour course given to first-year professional pharmacy students at Howard University College of Pharmacy. The survey investigated the knowledge and opinions of the students on the use of aloe vera juice, slippery elm, ginger tea, and chamomile tea for treating gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Demographic data indicated that most survey participants (77.5%) were female and 90% were in the age range 18-30 years. The primary residence of about 58% of the students was in the District of Columbia-Maryland-Virginia (DMV) area. Work experience prior to joining the College of Pharmacy varied from none to five or more years. About 66.7% had a Bachelor’s degree. Each student of the class of 2027 was asked two sets each of five questions, one set comprising knowledge-based questions, and the other comprising opinion-based questions. An average of about 53.5% of the survey respondents answered the knowledge-based questions correctly. The highest correct response rate was 80%, while the lowest was 20%. For the opinion-based questions, an average of about 77.5% of the respondents demonstrated a positive attitude, with the highest being for aloe vera at 85.7% in treating GERD. Strong disagreement was minimal, ranging from 0.0% to 8.6%.