Introdução: O uso de plantas medicinais é uma prática comum de cuidado primário nas populações em geral. Foi introduzido no Brasil, por influência das culturas indígena, africana e europeia e caracteriza-se por ser oriundo do conhecimento e da tradição popular. Objetivos: Sendo o Recôncavo da Bahia uma região de forte influência africana, o objetivo deste estudo foi investigar o uso das principais plantas medicinais e identificar seu uso pela população de um de seus municípios, valorizando o acervo cultural e o saber popular de seus moradores quanto aos benefícios que essas plantas trazem para a população. Metodologia: Para a obtenção dos dados, foi aplicado um questionário sociodemográfico, contendo questões sobre o uso de plantas para fins medicinais em chás ou xaropes com 154 entrevistados. Resultados: Desse universo de pessoas, 74,71% tinham o costume de usar remédios caseiros e 60,0% eram do gênero feminino. Os vegetais mais citados para fins medicinais foram: Lippia alba (n=71), Cymbopogon citratus (n=31), Pimpinella anisum (n=30), Peumus boldus (n=14), Plantago major e Ocimum basilicum (n=13 cada); sendo utilizados principalmente como calmante, dores em geral e contra gases. Quanto ao local de obtenção dos vegetais, os entrevistados cultivavam a planta (94,6%), pegavam do cultivo de amigos e vizinhos (1,8%), compravam na feira livre (1,8%), compravam em farmácia ou adquiriam de outros lugares (0,9%). Conclusões: Os dados evidenciam a relevância da prática do uso de plantas para manutenção da saúde dos moradores do município pesquisado, sendo parte integrante de seu contexto sociocultural. As diferentes finalidades do uso de plantas para fins medicinais mostram que mais estudos são necessários para avaliar as propriedades dessas plantas e seus efeitos no organismo humano.
Respiratory allergies may develop at any age, but the onset are more frequent in childhood and juvenile population due to genetic factors and to development of the immune system, which may presents as rhinitis and/or asthma. In Brazil, asthma is the second cause of hospital admission in children aged four to nine years old and the third in adolescents. Exposure to pathogens, particularly helminths, and their products are common in developing countries, and it appears to protect against the development of autoimmune and allergic diseases in experimental and human models. Based on these data, the present study investigated the presence of allergic conditions, infection by intestinal parasites and symptomatology on the juvenile population of the rural area of Santo Antônio de Jesus (Bahia -Brazil), from July to October, 2015. A questionnaire was applied to evaluate asthma and allergic symptoms and the parasitological feces exam was performed in 47 individuals. The study identified 81% of the positive samples for at least one parasite species; 45% polyparasitism; and the prevalence to Endolimax nana (48%) and hookworms (39%); eczema as the predominant allergic manifestation (34%) and headache, fatigue after physical activity, urticaria, itching in the head and nervousness as the most frequent signs and symptoms. The prevalence of enteroparasites, respiratory allergy and the symptoms associated with each of them are present in the studied population, and it may be related not only to the infection, but also to the presence of previous or overlapping diseases.
Demographic and social studies, as well as economic and cultural factors in a community are important regarding public health. This study identified demographic, socioeconomic and cultural aspects correlated with intestinal parasites in the population of Santo Antônio de Jesus, Bahia-Brazil, from July to October 2015. 53 semi-structured questionnaires were applied to the rural population of the municipality with previous clarification on the purpose of the study. There were questions related to the individual’s gender, family income and parental level of education. Laboratory parasitological analyzes were performed to investigate enteroparasites and produced the following results: 53.7% (n=58) were female; 62.8% (n=66) with monthly family income lower or equal to the minimum wage and 48% (n=48) of adults with incomplete basic education. The main enteroparasites found in this population were: Iodamoeba butschlii, Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar complex, Giardia intestinalis, Entamoeba coli and Endolimax nana in addition to some geohelminths, such as hookworms and Enterobius vermicularis. The profile visualized can be understood as a risk factor for the development of certain parasitic infections that are intrinsically associated to the social and economic aspects of vulnerable populations.KEY WORDS: Teenager; adult; child; parasitic diseases.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.