An inventory of 41 plant species from 29 families for which were trees, 11 shrubs and 17 herbaceous plants were observed, an indication of high plant biodiversity. One major difference between conventional, western medicine and traditional african medicine, is the way of viewing illnesses and their treatments. Most of the research works done on traditional medicine in southern ethiopia were on areas of south west and almost nothing has been done around wolaita zone. Map of the study area indicating surveyed informal herbal medicine shops and districts. Information on the botany, main traditional uses and active ingredients of the most commonly used and best known south african drug plants is presented in this photographic guide. The use of medicinal plants as a fundamental component of the african traditional healthcare system is perhaps the oldest and the most assorted of all therapeutic systems. The traditional medicinal plants of hadiya were studied ethno botanically. Medicinal plants and traditional medicine in africa. The data were collected from traditional healers and knowledgeable hadiya people using semistructured interview, field. The following 82 pages are in this category, out of 82 total. Towards an integrated approach to health and medicine in africa.
Professionalisation of traditional medicine in zimbabwe, harare, jongwe. An overview of the use and trade of plants and animals in. Prior to the introduction of cosmopolitan medicine, traditional medicine used to be the dominant medical system available to millions of people in africa in both rural and urban communities. It was at this time that the whos traditional medicine programme was established. The book covers the rich diversity of plants found in kenya, tanzania and uganda, from sea to alpine plants. An appraisal of ten potent african medicinal plants m. The term medicinal plant include various types of plants used in herbalism herbology or herbal medicine.
Trends and challenges of traditional medicine in africa. Pdf traditional african medicine tam is characterized by a belief in the supernatural as a. Traditional medicine features in the lives of thousands of south africans every day. Introduction ethnobotanical use of plants has been known since ancient time and ethnomedicine which is a su bf i eld oe th n ay rm cp gv. Introduction and importance of medicinal plants and herbs. Map 5 plate vi vi1 map 6 plate vii vii1 map 7 plate viii map 8 villl v11l2. The present study represents an attempt to document information on the traditional medicinal plants that used in nigeria.
In africa, for example, plants are used in traditional medicine to treat different infectious and noninfectious diseases through different routes of administration 1. Thus, decreasing positive attitude towards use of medicinal plants in traditional medicine by young generation indicate the loss of vital indigenous knowledge. Knowledge and use of traditional medicinal plants by the setswanaspeaking. Beneficiaries of the practice cut across the gender, age, education and social status divide. Medicinal plants in mozambique and their popular use. A total of 36 plant species used in traditional medicine for the treatment of candida infections and belonging to 21 plant families were identified. Its aims are to supplement the already published book entitled poisonous plants of east africa and to try to answer the many puzzling questions about the traditional use of medicinally active herbs. For the present study research was done on the available information about medicinal plants commonly used for. Hypoxis hemerocallidea african potato has been used as a traditional medicine in south africa and probably the best known muti plant in the country.
Medicinal plants are used in the treatments of many diseases and illnesses, the. Some medicinal forest plants 67 of africa and latin america. Traditional use of medicinal plants in southcentral zimbabwe. Ethnobotanical inventory of medicinal plants used in traditional veterinary medicine in northern cote divoire west africa witabouna mamidou kone, k. The p h a r maceutical potentials of african medicinal plants a r e immense. Herbal medicines used by bapedi traditional healers to. Review open access traditional use of medicinal plants in. Relevant information on the use of ethiopian traditional medicinal plants for cancer treatment.
First published in 1986, this book describes the most important medicinal plants in tropical west africa and similar humid tropical climates. Medicinal plants and traditional healing in contemporary. Pdf handbook of african medicinal plants semantic scholar. Traditional medicine has remained as the most affordable and easily accessible source of treatment in the primary healthcare system of resource poor communities in zimbabwe. Medicinal plants native to africa used in historical andor contemporary healing traditions. Traditional african medicine and its role in healing in a. Pdf the use of medicinal plants as a fundamental component of the african traditional healthcare system is perhaps the oldest and the most. Medicinal plants used to treat neurological disorders in. After a short introduction about early traditional medicine, the bulk of the book gives an account of locally occurring plants, grouped by their medicinal actions. The booklet is a guide to the most commonly utilised. The study aimed to document indigenous knowledge on use and management as well as to investigate the threats to traditional medicinal resources.
Countries in africa, asia and latin america use traditional medicine to help meet some. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 19 1987 670 67 eisevier scientific publishers ireland ltd. The threat posed by o v e r exploitation of medicinal plants has serious implications on the survival of several plant species, many of which are faced with extinction. Up to 80% of the population relies on these traditional medicines. African traditional medicine is the oldest, and perhaps the. Some selected medicinal plants for the treatment of malaria under ongoing. African traditional medicines and indigenous knowledge. Proximate analysis, mineral contents, amino acid composition, antinutrients and phytochemical screening of brachystegia eurycoma harms and pipper guineense schum and thonn. An ethnobotanical survey of indigenous knowledge on medicinal plants used by the traditional healers of the lwamondo area, limpopo.
Some people estimate up to 80% of the population uses traditional medicines to promote wellbeing. The demand for medicinal plants in africa is increasing dramatically due to. Herbal medicines include herbs, herbal materials, herbal preparations and finished. East africa also has a rich ethnic diversity and a large number of herbalists whose traditional knowledge and practices are. The global demand for herbal medicine is not only large, but growing srivastava 2000. Yet, so many stereotypes exist for the traditional healers and their medicines that are collectively called muti. China and india have standardized their own indigenous medicine and pharmacopoeia yet countries in africa, despite the pressures of disease and the abundance of plant species, have not followed suit. During the field interview, the information was noted in. Medicinal plants used by tanzanian traditional healers in. The cape floral kingdom alone has nearly 9000 species and is the most diverse temperate flora on earth. Botanical names and families have all been updated to the latest revised flora parts of the region.
An overview of ethiopian traditional medicinal plants used. Of the close to 6400 plant species used in tropical africa, for instance, more than 4000 are used as medicinal plants. Africa medical general medical pharmacology medicinal plants medicinal plants africa medicine, primitive therapeutics therapeutics africa traditional medicine traditional medicine africa. However, says the network on medicinal plants and traditional medicine eastern africa, loss of these genetic resources and their habitat is escalating. In all countries of the world there exists traditional. Medicinal plants are plants which are used in herbalism and thought to have certain extractablecompound in their leaves, stems, flowers and fruit for medicinal purposes. South africas biodiversity is a rich source of the medicinal plants that form the basis of traditional medicine.
Traditional medicinal plants, respiratory problems, rural people, krishna 1. Medicinal plants of ea text african books collective. Page 30 ethnobiological survey of traditional medicine practice for the. According to the world health organisation who the definition of traditional medicine may be summarized as the. For most ethnic groups in south africa, this rich indigenous knowledge on medicinal species used to manage reproductive ailments is either poorly known or misunderstood. Overview on medicinal plants and traditional medicine in africa the importance of traditional medicine in africa in all countries of the world there exists traditional knowledge related to the health of humans and animals. Traditional african medicine is a traditional medicine discipline involving indigenous herbalism. Within the who african region, between 2005 and 2018, significant. This list may not reflect recent changes learn more. Medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by oromo. Introduction to medicinal and aromatic plants in africa. A compiled check list of these plants including their latin names. This book is the result of ten years of research work in kenya, tanzania and uganda by the author. Most of the existing texts on traditional medicine in africa deal only with medicinal plants and their uses, ignoring chemical and pharmacological studies.
These healing plants treated all sorts of maladies including cancer, diabetes and tuberculosis tb as well as more benign complaints such as the. Commemoration of african traditional medicine day in cameroon. Traditional medicinal plants utilization, management and. An overview of the use and trade of plants and animals in traditional medicine systems in cambodia 2 an overview of the use and trade. A total of twenty six field trips were made for documentation. Encephalartos fridericiguilielmi harvested for traditional medicine. Five, ten, six and seventeen plants were collected from coast, dar es salaam, morogoro and tanga regions, respectively, with four of the plants being collected in more than one region. Medicinal plant resource map within the villages of motseng, lititjhereng and thabatjhitja. Africa is considered to be the cradle of humankind, with a rich biological and cultural diversity and marked regional differences in healing practices. This is an alphabetical list of plants used in herbalism the ability to synthesize a wide variety of chemical compounds that are possibly used to perform important biological functions, and to defend against attack from predators such as insects, fungi and herbivorous mammals is called herbal medicine. Southern africa has well over 30 000 species of higher plants. Overview on medicinal plants and traditional medicine in africa. Medicinal plants and traditional healing in contemporary rural south africa interdisciplinary land use and natural resource management agnete stoffersen, mie winstrup, riikka nieminen and tristan allerton. Traditional medicinal plant practice in southern africa.
Overview on medicinal plants and traditional medicine in. In many parts of rural africa, traditional healers prescribing medicinal plants are the most easily accessible and affordable health resource available to the local community and at times the only therapy that subsists. Medicinal plants of east africa is a revised edition of the book first published in 1976 on herbal remedies and he traditional medical practice of east africa. Unlike its western counterpart, traditional african medicine is said to take a holistic approach, which is based on the premise of interconnectedness, and often includes indigenous herbalism in its treatment. Some medicinal forest plants of africa and latin america 67 food and agriculture organization of the united nations.
Africa, traditional healers and remedies made from plants play an important role in the health of millions of people. Investigation of medicinal plants at katakhali pouroshova of rajshahi district and their conservation management was carried out from december 20 to july 2015. It is the use of plants for medicinal purposes, and the study of such uses. South africa is the third most biodiverse country in the world and inhabitants have for centuries employed the help of indigenous medicinal plants. Pdf toxicity studies of medicinal plants used in sub. Introduction to traditional medicine pharmaceutical press. This new edition has a second introduction into the area of traditional medicine as practised by both.
Medicinal plants traded in informal herbal medicine. These extracts are used as inputs in the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, insecticide and other chemical industries. Thus a study was undertaken to document medicinal species used by the bapedi traditional healers to treat reproductive ailments in the limpopo province of south africa. However, the arrival of the europeans marked a significant turning point in the history of this agelong tradition and culture. This study gives an insight into the strategic plan and road map set up by. Herbal medicines in africa are generally not adequately researched, and are weakly regulated. Traditional medicinal plant practice is widely accepted as an alternative to modern medicine in rural, periurban and urban areas.