Ethnomedicinal survey of indigenous medicinal plants in Jos Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Indigenous knowledge is progressively fading out because of a lack of proper record-keeping, as the knowledge is transmitted verbally. There is, therefore, a dire need for preserving this valuable knowledge by ensuring proper documentation and sharing of traditional knowledge.Aim: This research study sought to explore the indigenous knowledge used by herbal medicine practitioners for treating various human ailments in Jos Metropolis of Plateau State, Nigeria.Setting: The study was conducted using a structured questionnaire administered to 100 registered traditional healers in Jos North LGA of Plateau State.Methods: Selected medicinal plants were collected, pressed and transported to the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN), Ibadan for identification, authentication and deposition of voucher specimens for voucher number at FRIN herbarium, Ibadan. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the ethnomedicinal data.Results: Thirty-nine plant species, distributed in 33 families and 39 genera, were cited by the respondents. The Fabaceae was the most represented family, followed by the Euphorbiaceae and Myrtaceae. Leaves were the most used plant part (29%), whilstthe most cited plant habit forms include trees (48%) and herbs (31%). The herbal remedies were mostly administered orally (53%) and topically (26%), whilst the most common method of preparation was decoction (42%). The highest consensus factor (1.00) was detected for chickenpox or measles or leprosy, haemorrhoids and sickle cell ailments.Conclusion: There is an existence of a wide gap in traditional healing knowledge between the elderly and the younger generations in the study area. The high fidelity level observed in this study implied a general acceptance and preferred usage of such herbal plants for the treatment of particular ailments.

Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants Used in the Treatment of COVID-19 and Related Respiratory Infections in Ogbomosho South and North Local Government Areas, Oyo State, Nigeria

“…Generally, the majority (55.4%) of the people with indigenous knowledge in this study were older than age 51. This result is similar to previous reports on the ethnobotanical survey of indigenous medicinal plants in Nigeria [ 24 ] and Northern Morocco [ 36 ]. The predominance of elderly participants with indigenous knowledge in the present study agrees with previous reports that older people (above age 50) are usually more knowledgeable about the practice of herbal medicine [ 24 ].…”

“…This result is similar to previous reports on the ethnobotanical survey of indigenous medicinal plants in Nigeria [ 24 ] and Northern Morocco [ 36 ]. The predominance of elderly participants with indigenous knowledge in the present study agrees with previous reports that older people (above age 50) are usually more knowledgeable about the practice of herbal medicine [ 24 ]. The results also revealed a gap between the older and younger generations in the knowledge of indigenous plant use in the study area.…”

“…However, leaves were the most commonly used plant part for treating COVID-19 (39%) and flu (31%), while the bark (20%) was the most commonly used part for treating cough ( Figure 3 ). Several previous studies in Nigeria have also reported that leaves and bark were more utilized in the traditional treatment of different ailments than other plant parts [ 24 , 39 , 40 ]. The widespread use of leaves for herbal medicine preparation may be attributed to their relatively high abundance, accessibility, and ease of collection [ 42 ].…”

“…However, for the three respiratory infections referenced, a significant number of the medicinal plants were trees (54%, 52%, and 53% for COVID-19, cough, and flu, respectively), followed by herbs (31%, 23%, and 27% for COVID-19, cough, and flu, respectively), and climbers were the lowest growth forms utilized for treating COVID-19, cough, and flu. In terms of sustainability and conservation, harvesting leaves from trees may be more sustainable than other growth forms, given that trees are more resilient due to their sizes [ 24 ]. The dominance of woody perennials as sources of herbal remedies may be connected to the rainforest vegetation of the study area.…”

“…These surveys are vital in expressing the importance of plant species, that is, for discovering new therapeutic agents [ 23 ]. An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants is thus applicable as a vital approach for identifying and selecting plants that can be subjected to further phytochemical and pharmacological screening for developing novel therapeutic agents [ 24 ].…”