Effect of herbal soup on immunological parameters of people living with HIV, Kenya - a parallel single blind randomized control trial

Approximately 39 million people living with HIV (PLWH) are at risk of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID 19). COVID 19 can lead to serious negative health outcomes for PLWH with a low CD4+ count and increased viral load (VL). The objective of this study was to determine the effect of herbal soup (formulated by mixing; dried ginger powder, dried garlic powder, roasted butternut squash powder, ground chia seeds, ground sunflower seeds, dried turmeric powder and chili pepper powder) on the immunological parameters of PLWH. This was a parallel single blind randomized control trial (RCT) conducted in Kakamega County Teaching and Referral Hospital (KCTRH) Comprehensive Care Centre (CCC). Block randomization and sequentially numbered opaque envelopes were used to assign respondents to either control group (received standard care including Nutrition counselling and anti-HIV drugs) or treatment group (received herbal soup in addition to the standard care). Participants in the treatment group prepared and consumed 1 serving (16.35g) of the soup daily for 3 months. A total of 60 respondents were selected for the control group (n=30) and treatment group (n=30), of whom, a small sample size of 41 completed the study limiting the study findings from drawing policy conclusions. Statistical Packages for Social Sciences was used for data organization and management. Paired t-test was used to determine the effect of herbal soup on CD4+ cell count and Viral Load (VL). The study findings indicated no significant effect on the mean CD4+ cell count (p=0.838), (±277) and mean VL (p=0.051), (±42) in the control group. There was a significant effect on mean CD4+ cell count (p=0.012), (±199), however, no significant effect on the mean VL (p=0.102), (±74) in the treatment group. The study concluded that the herbal soup had an effect on the CD4+ cell count and can be adopted for use at household and facility level to improve the immune defence of PLWH during emerging virus-related epidemics such as COVID 19. Key words: HIV/AIDS, SARS-CoV-2, COVID 19, CD4+ cell count, viral load, herbal soup