Folk medicine used for the treatment of gynaecological disorders in rural areas of Bhadrak district, Odisha, India

Abstract

Panda T., Mishra N., Rahimuddin S., Pradhan B.K., Rout S.D., Mohanty R.B., 2018: Folk medicine used for the treatment of gynaecological disorders in rural areas of Bhadrak district, Odisha, India. -Botanica, 24(2): 132-142.Folk knowledge of the people in a given community has developed over time and is based on experience often tested over centuries of use, adapted to the local culture and environment and held by individuals or communities. This knowledge on resource utilization by human beings for medicinal purposes might have been established by trial and error, accumulated over thousands of years and often becomes encoded in everyday cultural practices. This study addresses an ethno-medicinal investigation in the interior of Bhadrak district, Odisha, India to explore, document and preserve the traditional knowledge for therapeutic use against gynaecological disorders by local inhabitants. The study is primarily based on field surveys carried out in villages, where traditional healers provided information about plant species used as medicine. Data on the use of medicinal plants were collected using standard procedures. A total of 38 medicinal plant species belonging to 29 families were gathered and documented throughout the study period to cure gynaecological ailments of human being. The predominant families are Fabaceae, Apocynaceae and Amaranthaceae. The most widely accepted plant species for the management of gynaecological ailments are Achyranthes

Palmyra Palm (Borassus flabellifer L., Arecaceae) as a Valuable Resource for Livelihood Security in Odisha, India

“…Similarly, Balamurugan et al (2018) [16] and Panda et al (2018) [17] reported the same findings. Indigenous peoples across the studied area depend closely on palms for food and construction material.…”

Phytochemical Constituents and Nutritional Potential of Palmyra Palm: A Review

“…(Krishnaveni et al, 2020). The natural fibre that is taken from the palmyra palm is used for construction of thatched homes, baskets, winnowing fans (Kula), and fences (Panda et al, 2018).…”

“…The natural food coloring substance can be extracted from matured ripe husk or mesocarp of palmyra (Selvakumar and Thanapaul, 2020). Also the palmyra is used for production of chemicals such as pectin, cellulose, hemicelluloses, pentosan-polysulfates, polyphenols, and lignin from the paste of male inflorescence (Balamurugan et al, 2018;Panda et al, 2018). The community of "Chamar" members extracts the sap from the male flower to make a fermented alcoholic beverage known as "Tadi".…”

“…Palmyra pulp is a tropical fruit usually popular as toddy palm, wine palm, longer palm, palmyra, in English whereas Taad (Hindi), Talam (Tamil), Tatichettu (Telugu), Karimpana (Malayalam), Taal (Bengali), Tala (Odia) (Nesbitt, 2005;Panda et al, 2018). The name is derived from the Greek words "Borassus" and "flabellifer," which mean, respectively, "fruit with leather wrapping" and "fan-bearer" (Kurian et al, 2017).…”

“…The palmyra tree has 20-40 fresh, grey-green leaves that are 1-3 m broad, fan-shaped, folded along the midrib towards the top of the trunk. The flowering and fruiting of the dioecious plant typically take place from March to April each year (Panda et al, 2018). Only the female plant produces the edible by products, such as immature endosperm, matured fleshy mesocarp, and tuberous seedling (Vengaiah et al, 2017).…”