Tropentag 2022, September 14 - 16, Prague, Germany "Can agroecological farming feed the world? Farmers' and academia's views."

Medicinal plants used in metropolitan zone in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico

¹National Inst. for Agriculture, Forest and Livestock, Agriculture, Mexico
²Autonomous Agrarian University Antonio Narro, Forest Dept. , Mexico

Abstract

Medicinal plants are considered those plants that contain active ingredients in any of their organs or tissues when administered in sufficient doses and for a determined period of time to have a healing effect. Around the world there are at least 35,000 species of medicinal plants and it is estimated that at least 80% of the world's population depends on them for their health. This study is about the uses of the most common medicinal plants and the most frequent affections in the study area, which was the metropolitan area of Saltillo, Coahuila, in the municipalities of Saltillo, Arteaga and Ramos Arizpe. The study was carried out during the months of February and March 2021. Data were obtained from 113 informants (17 men and 96 women, aged 20 to 70 years), using a semi-structured questionnaire divided into two parts: 1) socioeconomic and demographic information (age, sex, level of education, occupation, etc.) and 2) ethnobotanical information (obtaining data about the medicinal plants of the region).
The report of uses obtained was divided into 12 main categories based on the World Health Organisation's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Health Problems (ICD, 2019). Informants recorded an average of 4.6 plants and 5 uses. According to gender, women recorded 4.9 plants on average, compared to men with 3.1 plants on average. Inhabitants reported using 82 plants for treatment of diseases, belonging to 37 botanical families. The medicinal species with the highest IVU (Use Value Index) were: chamomile (IVU=0.65) and laurel (IVU=0.35). While the most representative families were: Asteraceae (10 species, 125 use reports), Lamiaceae (12 species, 119 RU) and Lauraceae (4 species, 64 RU). The most common forms of preparation were infusion (88.6%) and poultice (3.68%).

Keywords: Asteraceae, etnobotanical, medicinal plants, respiratory system

Contact Address: Diana Uresti Duran, National Inst. for Agriculture, Forest and Livestock, Agriculture, Boulevard los Fundadores 3655, 25294 Saltillo, Mexico, e-mail: durestid21gmail.com