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tangent
03-06-02, 17:56
interesting summary at bottom...

Authors/Title:
Title: Contribution to the ethnopharmacology of the Lowland Quichua people of Amazonian Ecuador
Personal Author: Marles, Robin J.;Neill, David A.;Farnsworth, Norman R.
Institutional Author: USAID. Mission to Ecuador
Series: Revista de la Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicas y Naturales, v. 16, no. 63
Document Information:
Publication Date: 1988
Pagination: p. 111-120 [10 p.]
DOCID/Order No: PN-ABC-296
Cost: $1.30 (paper) | $1.25 (microfiche)
Project Number: 5180023
Primary Subjects: Health research;Folk culture;Medicinal plants;Traditional societies;Traditional health workers;Pharmacology
Countries/Regions: Ecuador
Report Type: Other USAID Supported Study/Document
Abstract:




Field research was conducted on the traditional medicinal plants of the lowland Quijos Quichua people living in the Amazonian rain forest in eastern Ecuador. Under the direction of Quichua medicine men, some 120 species of plants were collected. Of the 80 or more native uses of these medicines, by far the most common were for treating symptoms suggestive of parasitic infections; other common uses are for pain management, female fertility and its regulation, and as anti-venoms. An extensive review of the ethnobotanical, pharmacological, chemical, and toxicological literature provided substantial collaboration of the Quichua traditional medicines; in fact, correlations between the literature and the field results were 2-3 times what could be attributed to random chance, thus reaffairming the value of studying traditional medicines in order to discover new therapeutic agents or new local sources of therapeutic agents. In some cases, however, the literature contradicted Quichuan use or indicated toxicity. No particular medicinal plant, therefore, can be assumed to be both safe and effective; thorough evaluations are needed. Medicinal plants with proven safety and efficacy can then be incorporated into the pharmacopoeia of their native countries and the practice of primary health care. Included is a list of the medicinal plants, their families, scientific names, traditional uses, and an indication whether corroborating information is available.

http://www.dec.org/search/content.cfm?Rec_no=53736

tangent
03-13-02, 22:44
as a side note - the same plants tend to crop up in different countries on different sides of the world, so long as they are in the same climatic zone. As an example, many plants found in parts of Russia are also found in the USA... I suspect the same is true for China, England, etc. This tends to open up research avenues.