A selection of medicinal plants used as blood purifiers by folk medicinal practitioners of Bangladesh (original) (raw)
Related papers
2011
Folk medicinal practitioners, otherwise known as Kavirajes form an important component of the primary health-care system of Bangladesh. Almost every village of the 86,000 villages of the country has one or more practicing Kavirajes. Kavirajes also practice in the towns and cities; however, their patients mainly consist of the rural population of the country. The major distinction separating the Kavirajes from other forms of traditional medicinal practices of Bangladesh is their almost exclusive reliance on medicinal plants in their formulations, which are simple and mainly consist of plant juice, decoctions or pastes that is administered orally or topically depending upon the ailment. In previous ethnomedicinal surveys, we have observed considerable differences in the selection of medicinal plants for treatment of the same ailment among Kavirajes of even adjoining villages. Thus to get a comprehensive view of the medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes and their mode of use, one has to survey the Kaviraj population of Bangladesh. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey among the Kavirajes of six villages, namely Akhanagar, Akcha, Goualia, Raipur, Uttar Thakurgaon, and Vungapara, which falls in Thakurgaon district in the northern part of the country. It was observed that a total of 110 plants were used by the Kavirajes, the plants being distributed into 63 families. Virtually all plant parts were used in treatments; however, leaves constituted 44.6% of the total uses. Other major plant parts used were whole plants (8.1%), roots (13.5%), fruits (10.8%), and stems (6.1%). The Kavirajes treated a wide variety of ailments. From the number of plants used (29), gastrointestinal disorders appeared to be the most common ailment treated. Respiratory tract disorders like cold, coughs and asthma were treated with 19 plant species, and fever was treated with 10 plant species. The Kavirajes had 11 plants for treatment of diabetes, 10 plants for pain in various forms, 10 plants for jaundice, 9 plants for treatment of urinary problems like dysuria or polyuria, and 8 plants for treatment of sex-related disorders. Other ailments treated by the Kavirajes included skin disorders, cancer, fungal infections, eye problems, cuts and wounds, burns, helminthiasis, paralysis, heart disorders, hypertension, alopecia, gout, rheumatism, debility, menstrual problems, cholera, hemorrhoids, gall bladder and kidney stones, snake bite, insect bite, rabies, epistaxis, mumps, chicken pox, and bone fractures. Since the Kavirajes' medicinal plant repertoire included plants which were used for treatment of diseases difficult to cure with modern allopathic medicine like cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and rheumatism, these plants merit further scientific studies towards discovery of new drugs, which can prove beneficial in the treatment of some major diseases affecting millions of people throughout the world.
Traditionally Medicinal Plants Uses in the Village of Bangladesh
World Journal of Pharmaceutical Research
Anciently plants are used for several acute and chronic diseases. Plants contains more than thousands secondary metabolites those are exhibit several potential pharmacological activity and lead compounds. Future investigation would lead to identification, purification of lead compounds from those plants. This investigation indicate the use of plants in combination or individual for remedies of several diseases like as chicken pox, bone fracture, orchitis, snake bite, jaundice, fever, typhoid, ear infection, skin diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, pain, poisonous insect bites, hepatitis B, whitish discharge from vagina, respiratory disorders, tooth infections, gonorrhea, passing of semen with urine, puerperal fever, cuts and wounds as well as uterine problems. All the plants used anciently are interest for further scientific studies to determine their efficacy in treatment some formulations reported for the treatment of diabetes, hepatitis B, ca...
TRADITIONALLY MEDICINAL PLANTS USE IN THE VILLAGE OF BANGLADESH
Anciently plants are used for several acute and chronic diseases. Plants contains more than thousands secondary metabolites those are exhibit several potential pharmacological activity and lead compounds. Future investigation would lead to identification, purification of lead compounds from those plants. This investigation indicate the use of plants in combination or individual for remedies of several diseases like as chicken pox, bone fracture, orchitis, snake bite, jaundice, fever, typhoid, ear infection, skin diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, pain, poisonous insect bites, hepatitis B, whitish discharge from vagina, respiratory disorders, tooth infections, gonorrhea, passing of semen with urine, puerperal fever, cuts and wounds as well as uterine problems. All the plants used anciently are interest for further scientific studies to determine their efficacy in treatment some formulations reported for the treatment of diabetes, hepatitis B, cardiovascular disorders and gonorrhea deserve special research either because of the development of drug-resistant bacterial strains (like as gonorrhea), diabetes, cardiovascular disorders and hepatitis B are becoming endemic throughout the world for various reasons and modern medicine has no effective treatment for these ailments. This study would more effective in future for isolation, purification and development of new molecules for several acute and chronic diseases.
Medicinal Plants and Formulations of a Folk Medicinal Practitioner of Magura District, Bangladesh
World Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015
Background. Folk medicine is widely practiced by Kavirajes and is one of the most common forms of traditional medicinal systems in Bangladesh. However, the medicinal plant selections and diseases treated vary widely from Kaviraj to Kaviraj. The objective of this study was to document the folk medicinal practices of a Kaviraj practicing in Magura district of the country. Methods. Interviews of the Kaviraj were carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. Results. The Kaviraj used a total of 16 plants distributed into 14 families for treatment. The various diseases treated included typhoid, any type of fever, respiratory tract disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, poisoning, bleeding from cuts and wounds, skin diseases, tooth infections, bone fracture, loss of taste, spermatorrhea, and leucorrhea. Conclusion. Ethnomedicinal studies can lead to proper documentation of the medicinal plants and their usages in a given area. As such, the present study not only documents medicinal plants of an area in Magura district but also opens up further possibilities of scientific research leading to new drug discovery.
Advances in Natural and Applied Sciences, 2011
The inhabitants of Bangladesh are mostly Bengali speaking (about 98% of the population, the other 2% being tribal population). Folk medicinal practitioners play an important role in the Bengali-speaking rural society of Bangladesh, where people still rely on them for provision of health-care. This is not only because the rural population of Bangladesh lacks proper access to modern medical facilities, but also because of tradition, which dates back to centuries ago. The common feature of folk medicinal practitioners is use of single or multiple plants for cure of ailments. The ailments treated vary from simple ailments like coughs or cold to complicated ailments like diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, arthritis, or paralysis. Almost every village of the 86,000 villages of Bangladesh has one or more practicing folk medicinal practitioners, known as Kavirajes. Additionally, Bangladesh has over two dozens of tribes, who have their own tribal medicinal practitioners, and who as a group ...
Medicinal plants of a folk medicinal healer of Rangpur district, Bangladesh
Journal of Medicinal Plants Studies, 2014
Folk medicinal healers (Kavirajes) of Bangladesh use a variety of medicinal plants to treat diseases and the selection of medicinal plants differs widely between Kavirajes of even adjacent areas. Thus, it is important to document the medicinal plants and formulations of individual Kavirajes. The objective of this study was to document the plants and formulations of a Kaviraj of Rangpur district, Bangladesh. The study was carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided filed-walk method. The Kaviraj was observed to use a total of 17 plants distributed into 15 families in his formulations. The plants were used to treat various types of pain, fever, respiratory tract disorders, jaundice, skin disorders, liver disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, abscess, and chicken pox. Since ethnomedicinal observations can lead to further scientific research and discovery of new drugs, the medicinal plants used by the Kaviraj merit scientific attention.
MEDICINAL PLANTS AND FORMULATIONS OF A FOLK EDICINAL PRACTITIONER OF MAGURA DISTRICT, BANGLADESH
Background. Folk medicine is widely practiced by Kavirajes and is one of the most common forms of traditional medicinal systems in Bangladesh. However, the medicinal plant selections and diseases treated vary widely from Kaviraj to Kaviraj. The objective of this study was to document the folk medicinal practices of a Kaviraj practicing in Magura district of the country. Methods. Interviews of the Kaviraj were carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. Results. The Kaviraj used a total of 16 plants distributed into 14 families for treatment. The various diseases treated included typhoid, any type of fever, respiratory tract disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, poisoning, bleeding from cuts and wounds,skin diseases, tooth infections, bone fracture, loss of taste, spermatorrhea, and leucorrhea. Conclusion. Ethnomedicinal studies can lead to proper documentation of the medicinal plants and their usages in a given area. As such, the present study not only documents medicinal plants of an area in Magura district but also opens up further possibilities of scientific research leading to new drug discovery.
An ethnomedicinal survey was conducted among the folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) of two villages, namely, Shat-tola Bazaar and Talbari, in Bagerhat district of Bangladesh. Kavirajes use mainly medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments, and as such, proper documentation of such medicinal plants can not only give a comprehensive account of various medicinal plants of the country (many of which are still undocumented), but also spur scientific research and conservation efforts on these medicinal plants. Three Kavirajes from the afore-mentioned two villages were interviewed for the survey. It was observed that the Kavirajes used a total of 71 medicinal plants for treatment of a diverse variety of ailments. Two of the plants could not be identified. The rest 69 plants were distributed into 40 families. Plant parts were mostly used for treatment versus whole plants, and it was observed that different plant parts from the same plant were used for treatment of different diseases. The plant parts used included leaves, roots, stems, barks, tubers, rhizomes, flowers, fruits, seeds, and exudates (sap) from a plant. An interesting feature of the Kavirajes was that, in most cases, the same plant or parts from the same plant was used for treatment of a wide variety of diseases. Phytochemicals produced in a plant are responsible for different pharmacological activities, which, in turn can be utilized for amelioration or cure of various diseases. Different parts from the same plant may produce and usually do produce different types of phytochemicals. Thus different parts from the same plant possess the potential to be used for treatment of different diseases based on the relevant activity of the phytochemicals. That different plant parts were used by the Kavirajes, taken together with the fact that the same plant and sometimes the same plant part was used for treatment of multiple diseases, suggest strongly that considerable medicinal knowledge exists among the Kavirajes on the medicinal values of different plants and plant parts, even though the Kavirajes were totally ignorant of the identity of the actual phytochemicals present. Modern science and allopathic treatments can benefit a lot from the knowledge gained from traditional medicinal practices, for many important allopathic drugs have been discovered through close observations of such indigenous medicinal practices. Since the various diseases treated by the Kavirajes included diseases like diabetes and rheumatism, which cannot be cured with allopathic medicine, it can be hoped that further scientific research on the medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes can be fruitful towards the discovery of novel and perhaps more efficacious drugs.
American Eurasian Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, 2010
Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) of Bangladesh are consulted for treatment of various ailments by a substantial segment of the rural and urban population of the country. The major element that distinguishes the folk medicinal practitioners from other forms of medical practices is their use of simple formulations of medicinal plants for treatment. The plant(s) used by the Kavirajes for treatment of any specific ailment vary considerably in the various parts of the country, and such differences exist even among Kavirajes of adjoining villages. The objective of the present study was to conduct an ethnomedicinal survey among the Kavirajes of two villages, namely Babla and Terbaria, which lies in Tangail district in the central portion of the country. Each village had one practicing Kaviraj. After obtaining informed consent from the Kavirajes, interviews were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method. It was observed that the Kavirajes of the two villages used a total of 28 plants distributed into 22 families for treatment of various ailments. Leaves constituted the major plant part used, being used 48.7% of the time. From the number of plants used, it appeared that gastrointestinal tract disorders formed the major complaint of the patients with 5 plants used for treatment of various complaints like constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, and loss of appetite. Four plants each were used for treatment of pain, and skin disorders (scabies, eczema), and as blood purifier. Four plants were used for treatment of diseases in cattle. Among other ailments treated by the Kavirajes were tuberculosis, sexual disorders, urinary problems, infections, fever, hepatic disorders, kidney problems, pneumonia, stomach stones, diabetes, swellings, debility, helminthiasis, hypertension, vitamin C deficiency, tumor, and poisoning. One plant was used to maintain the body in good health and so served as a preventive measure instead of a curative effect. Since a number of allopathic medicines have been derived from medicinal plants, the plants reported in the present survey can, following scientific inquiry, form novel sources of newer drugs.
American-Eurasian Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, 2011
Medicinal plants form an important and often the only component in the formulations used by the folk medicinal practitioners of Bangladesh for treatment of various ailments. Folk medicinal practitioners, otherwise known as Kavirajes, perform an integral role in the delivery of primary health-care to substantial segments of both rural and urban population of the country. Their traditional medicinal practice, which is generally referred to as folk medicinal practice, is different from other forms of traditional medicine in Bangladesh like Ayurveda and Unani forms of traditional medicine. Kavirajes use simple formulations of medicinal plants, and their practice is often confined to the immediate family and passed on through successive generations. Thus over the centuries, Kavirajes have gained not only extensive knowledge on medicinal plants but also each Kaviraj has his or her own unique list of plants, which he or she uses in formulations. Bangladesh has over 86,000 villages with eac...