Popular and Famous Vegetation in Traditional Medicine of Lorestan Province

  • Mohammad Mehrnia * Lorestan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Centre, AREEO, Khorramabad, Iran https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8918-3653
  • Zahra Hosseini Graduated in plant systematics and ecology, Khorramabad, Iran
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22087/hmj.v5i3.838

Abstract

Background and Aim: About 2000 plant species grow in Lorestan province. Ethnobotany and folk healers have played major roles in the health of human beings since ancient times. The aim of this study was to identify and introduce the most widely used and common medicinal plants in traditional medicine of Lorestan province. Materials and Methods: In order to gather information about its medicinal properties and to learn about people's beliefs about the famous species of the region, several local people, including nomadic, rural residents of urban areas and healers of the province were interviewed. The local medicinal information was collected using semi-structured methods, interviews, and personal observations. The frequency of citation (FC) and relative citation frequency (RFC) indices were used to determine the significance of medicinal species. Plant specimens were collected from habitats of Lorestan province and then were identified and deposited in the herbarium. Results: Among the samples collected from different habitats of the province, 38 most widely used medicinal species belong to 20 plant families with the most extensive traditional use that were identified as the most famous medicinal plants in the region. According to the results of the present study, nomadic people (Kouch rou in Persian) had the most use of medicinal plants compared to other groups participating in the interviews. Conclusion: The high values ​​of FC and RFC indices for each species indicate the indigenous medicinal knowledge about the medicinal properties and treatment of diseases with that certain species. Medicinal plants in Lorestan are mainly used to treat gastrointestinal disorders, kidney diseases and nerve sedatives. Recording and publishing the local names of medicinal plants in the encyclopedia of the country will play pivotal roles in recognizing these potentials and exploiting them.
Published
2021-10-13
Issue
Vol. 5 No. 3 (2020): VOL 5, NO 3, 2020
Section
Original Article

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