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Factors in hybridization of local medical systems: Simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine in Northeast Brazil.

ABSTRACT: The presence of mainstream medicine in local medical systems inserts a set of external treatments and concepts that generate adjustments in the local conceptions of health and disease. What points in the system are most receptive to change? Who are the residents most likely to adopt these external treatments to deal with diseases? To answer these questions, this work used a study model consisting of the simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine, testing whether diseases that require greater treatment efforts are the main targets of adherence to modern medicine and if socioeconomic characteristics of residents can cause intracultural variation in relation to simultaneous use. To obtain socioeconomic data on the knowledge of medicinal plants and simultaneous use of these resources with modern medicine, semistructured interviews were conducted in a rural community that has easy access to modern medicine. Participatory workshops were held to access the local perceptions about the frequency of occurrence and severity of illnesses. A multilevel logistic regression model was applied for data analysis. We found that chronic, severe and frequently occurring diseases in the community tended to show greater simultaneous use locally. Among the socioeconomic factors, we determined that high educational levels positively influenced the combined use of plants and modern medicine. The need to ensure the cure of frequent, severe and chronic diseases is a factor that leads residents to seek a greater number of possible treatments, stimulating the combined use of plants and modern medicine. Residents with higher educational levels were more likely to use a combination of treatments than those with lower educational levels, demonstrating that more participation in formal education may facilitate the combined use of medicinal plants and modern medicine.

SUBMITTER: Nascimento ALB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6241117 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Factors in hybridization of local medical systems: Simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine in Northeast Brazil.

Nascimento André Luiz Borba ALB Medeiros Patrícia Muniz PM Albuquerque Ulysses Paulino UP

PloS one 20181114 11

The presence of mainstream medicine in local medical systems inserts a set of external treatments and concepts that generate adjustments in the local conceptions of health and disease. What points in the system are most receptive to change? Who are the residents most likely to adopt these external treatments to deal with diseases? To answer these questions, this work used a study model consisting of the simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine, testing whether diseases that requi ...[more]

PMID: 30427870

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Project description:BackgroundAnimal-based remedies constitute an integral part of Brazilian Traditional Medicine. Due to its long history, zootherapy has in fact become an integral part of folk medicine both in rural and urban areas of the country. In this paper we summarize current knowledge on zootherapeutic practices in Northeast of Brazil, based on information compiled from ethnobiological scientific literature.MethodsIn order to examine the diversity of animals used in traditional medicine in Northeast of Brazil, all available references or reports of folk remedies based on animals sources were examined. 34 sources were analyzed. Only taxa that could be identified to species level were included in assessment of medicinal animal species. Scientific names provided in publications were updated.ResultsThe review revealed that at least 250 animal species (178 vertebrates and 72 invertebrates) are used for medicinal purposes in Northeast of Brazil. The inventoried species comprise 10 taxonomic categories and belong to 141 Families. The groups with the greatest number of species were fishes (n = 58), mammals (n = 47) and reptiles (n = 37). The zootherapeutical products are used for the treatment of different illnesses. The most widely treated condition were asthma, rheumatism and sore throat, conditions, which had a wide variety of animals to treat them with. Many animals were used for the treatment of multiple ailments. Beyond the use for treating human diseases, zootherapeutical resources are also used in ethnoveterinary medicineConclusionThe number of medicinal species catalogued was quite expressive and demonstrate the importance of zootherapy as alternative therapeutic in Northeast of Brazil. Although widely diffused throughout Brazil, zootherapeutic practices remain virtually unstudied. There is an urgent need to examine the ecological, cultural, social, and public health implications associated with fauna usage, including a full inventory of the animal species used for medicinal purposes and the socio-cultural context associated with their consumption.

Project description:BackgroundEthnopharmacological studies about migrants reveal a dynamic process of knowledge and use of medicinal plants. In this study, we sought to elucidate quantitative and qualitatively the main factors influencing the use of medicinal plants by migrants from rural areas to an urban region in Brazil with traces of remnant natural vegetation.MethodsSeven Northeastern individuals who migrated to the Southeastern Region of Brazil (Bororé Peninsula, in the city of São Paulo) were selected to participate in semi-structured interviews regarding the use of medicinal plants throughout their lives, and indicated an inhabitant in their hometown that would be able to accompany the field collections in each area. Socioeconomic, educational, family structure, and use of Western medicine data were provided during interviews with the individuals from their hometowns. Plant samples cited by the interviewees were collected both at the current place of residence and in their hometowns.ResultsThe participants cited 131 plants and 315 recipes, being the main indications related to the gastrointestinal system, respiratory problems, and pain and inflammatory processes. We observed that most plant uses were maintained after migration. Higher percentages of maintenances and incorporations in plant uses occurred to exotic species, while replacements happen mainly to native plants. The introduction of new species into the migrants' therapeutics occurred mainly by observations of organoleptic similarities between the substituted plant and the incorporated species, conversations with neighbors, and contact with the television and print media. In addition, the public health system allowed the interviewees access to prophylactic drugs, leading to the discontinuation of certain recipes used in endemic diseases.ConclusionMigrants were exposed to information about new plants and their uses, new diseases, and socioeconomic and cultural differences that impacted their use of medicinal plants. Although migration to a more developed city facilitated access to public health and education, on the other hand, it made access to fresh medicinal plants difficult, causing some medicinal plants to be replaced or ceased to be used.

Project description:BackgroundOaxaca is one of the most diverse states in Mexico from biological and cultural points of view. Different ethnic groups living there maintain deep and ancestral traditional knowledge of medicinal plants as well as traditional practices and beliefs about diseases/illnesses and cures. Previous ethnobotanical research in this state has helped document this knowledge, but with the addition of more studies, more records appear. We updated the inventory of medicinal knowledge between the different ethnic groups that inhabit the Oaxacan territory.MethodsA database was constructed from two sources: (1) original data from a 3-year project in 84 municipalities of Oaxaca inhabited by eight ethnic groups and (2) different electronic databases.ResultsRecords of 1032 medicinal plants were obtained; 164 families were registered, with Asteraceae, Fabaceae, and Rubiaceae being the most commonly used. A total of 770 species were reported in 14 vegetation types; the most important species came from temperate forests. Only 144 species corresponded to introduced species, and 272 were listed in a risk category. Illnesses of the digestive and genitourinary systems as well as culture-bound syndromes were treated with high numbers of medicinal plants. The Mestizo, Mixe, Mixtec, and Zapotec ethnic groups exhibited the greatest number of recorded medicinal plants. The 17 species that were used among almost all ethnic groups in Oaxaca were also used to cure the highest number of diseases.DiscussionInventories of medicinal plants confirm the persistence of traditional knowledge and reflect the need to recognize and respect this cosmovision. Many species are gathered in wild environments. The most important illnesses or diseases recorded in the present inventory are also mentioned in different studies, suggesting that they are common health problems in the rural communities of Mexico.ConclusionsMedicinal plants are essential for ethnic groups in Oaxaca. It is necessary to recognize and understand the complex ancestral processes involved in the human-nature interaction and the role of these processes in the conservation of biodiversity and in the survivorship of ethnic groups that have persisted for centuries. Finally, this study serves as a wake-up call to respect those worldviews.

Dataset Information

Factors in hybridization of local medical systems: Simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine in Northeast Brazil.

Publications

Factors in hybridization of local medical systems: Simultaneous use of medicinal plants and modern medicine in Northeast Brazil.

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