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Ethnobotanical Leaflets 13: 989-1002. 2009. Assessment of
Some Therapeutic Plants of the Abbi People in Ndokwa West L.G.A of Delta State, Nigeria E.A Ogie-Odia ¹* and E.F Oluowo² ¹*Department of Botany, Ambrose Alli University, PMB14, Ekpoma
, Edo State ²Department of Animal and
Environmental Biology, University of Benin, PMB 1154, Benin City, Nigeria *Email: effexing@yahoo.com Issued August
1, 2009 Abstract Ethnomedicinal
investigations were conducted in Abbi Village in Ndokwa local government area of Delta state to identify
some medicinal plants used in the traditional pharmacopoeia for the treatment
of diseases affecting the human body. Most of the ailments treated or managed
by these medicinal plants include malaria, diabetes, high blood pressure and
dysentery to mention a few. Twenty-six (26) plant species belonging to
eighteen families (18) were recorded. Ethnomedicinal
information was collected through questionnaires and personal interviews. The
modes of herbal drugs preparation were mainly decoctions while others were
macerations and infusions. The most frequently used plant parts were the
leaves. The administration routes are through oral and
external routes. These medicinal
plants are used based on ethnobotanical evidence as
being safer, acceptable, affordable, culturally compatible and suitable for
chronic treatment. Some of these medicinal plants have some unpleasant side
effects which may be related to over doses or other factors leading to mild
or acute toxicity in the body. Aside this, if these problems are carefully
addressed, it will help to harness the therapeutic potentials of medicinal
plant species for further drug development both now and in the nearest
future. Public and private involvement in management and utilization of
medicinal plants in a sustainable way is essential to combat human pressures
on these valuable natural resources. Key words: Assessment, therapeutic plants, ethnomedicinal, Abbi people, Ndokwa west, Delta state. Introduction Plants
are the basis for the development of modern drugs and medicinal plants have
been used for many years in daily life to treat diseases all over the world (Ates and Erzdogrul, 2003).
According to Okoli et al., (2007), traditional medical practices on the African
continent date as far back as 4000 years and were the sole medical system for
health care before the advent of orthodox or modern medicine. Even today,
traditional medicine is still the predominant means of health care in
developing countries where about 80% of their total population depends on it
for their well being (WHO, 1978). Traditional medicinal plants are a
therapeutic resource used by the population of the African continent
specifically for health care, which may also serve as starting materials for
drugs (Sofowora, 1993). WHO (2001) defines
medicinal plant as herbal preparations produced by subjecting plant materials
to extraction, fractionation, purification, concentration or other physical
or biological processes which may be produced for immediate consumption or as
a basis for herbal products. Medicinal plants are of great importance to the
health of individuals and communities (Edeoga et al., 2005). A medicinal plant is
one whose one or more of its organs contains substances that can be used for
therapeutic purpose or which are precursors for the synthesis of useful drugs
(Sofowora, 1982). However, the knowledge of
medicinal plants is rapidly dwindling due to the influence of western
lifestyles, and lack of interest of the younger generations to carry on the
tradition (Muthu et al., 2006). Ethnobotanical studies are often significant in revealing
locally important plant species especially for the discovery of crude drugs.
Right from its beginning, the documentation of traditional knowledge,
especially on the medicinal uses of plants, has provided many important drugs
of modern day (Flaster,
1996). Out of the total flowering plants reported from the world, more than
50,000 are used for medicinal purposes (Govaerts,
2001; Shippmann, 2002). The growing public interest and awareness of natural
medicines have led the pharmaceutical industry and academic researchers to
pay more attention to medicinal plants (Day, 1998). The
apparent reversal of trend from western to herbal medicine is partly due to
the fact that synthetic drugs have always shown adverse reactions and other
undesirable side effects. This has led to the belief that natural products
are safe because they are more harmonious with biological systems (Erasto, 2003). Considering the rate at which the
vegetation is getting depleted in this part of the world, there is the need
to document the precious knowledge of these plants as well as the experience
of the traditional healers and herbalists. Documentation of the traditional
uses of medicinal plants is an urgent matter and important to preserve the
knowledge. Thus,
the purpose of this study is to investigate the traditional uses and remedies
of various indigenous medicinal plants used by the indigenes in Abbi clan of Ndokwa local
government area in Delta state and to provide baseline data for future
pharmacological and phytochemical studies. In
this study, we present the local and scientific names of the plants used for
the treatment of various ailments like malaria, cough and others in this
community as well as the parts of the plants used and the various methods of
preparation and administration. For these reasons, the documentations of the
traditional uses of indigenous plants are important to preserve their
knowledge. Materials
and Methods The ethnobotanical
assessments were carried out using questionnaires and interview was conducted. Conversations with
the informants were held to document and preserve the knowledge on the
medicinal plants. The informants were selected randomly. They were asked to
give their knowledge about the plants they use against a disease, plant parts
harvested, method of preparation of the remedy, details of administration and
the dosage. Collection of information from indigenes was
easily facilitated by a well known indigene in the locality as information
regarding medicinal plants was not easily given. Specimens of the reported
medicinal plants were collected and identified using texts such as Hutchinson
and Dalziel (1954, 1958, 1963, 1964, and 1972), Keay (1989) and Lowe (1989) while the voucher
specimens were deposited at the herbarium of Botany Department in Ambrose Alli University for identification and reference purpose. Plants
were also identified using the local names which were given by the
traditional midwives, herbsellers, herbalist, and
farmers in the village.
The
study area lies within the geographical coordinates of longitude 5°04´ East
and 6°43´ East and latitude 5°44´ North and 7°34´ North. Results
and Discussion Results from this study revealed that
the numbers of ethnomedicinally important plant
species documented in Abbi community were
twenty-six (Table 1). These medicinal plant species belong to eighteen
families. The family Solanaceae had five species
while genera like Liliaceae, Poaceae,
Anarcardiaceae and Asteraceae
were families with two species and the rest had one species each. This does
not mean that the family Solanaceae is the most
important but shows the diverse nature of the different plant species which
belongs to this particular genera. The remedies are taken either as decoction,
or administered directly to the infected parts. Others were mixed with
various plant species parts. The
natural resources in Abbi Ndokwa
West Local Government Area of Delta State are deteriorating rapidly than many
other global regions because it has received little attention. The wide spread
use of traditional medicinal plants among both urban and rural population could
be attributed to cultural acceptability, efficacy against certain type of
diseases, physical accessibility and economic affordability as compared to
modern medicine. This continued reliance of many African people on
traditional medicines is partly due to economic circumstances, which place
modern health facilities, services and pharmaceuticals out of the reach of
the majority of the population. However, in many cases, it is also
attributable to the widespread belief in the effectiveness of many
traditional therapies. Even where western biomedical care is available, many
people still prefer traditional treatments for treating many aliments (Asfaw et al.,
1999; Addis et al., 2001). Several
studies on the use of Mangifera indica, Carica papaya, Psidium guajava for treatment and management of ailments like
malaria and fever are in line with researches carried out by (Idu et al.,
2008; Okoegwale and Omofezi
, 2001). The measurements used to determine the dosages are not standardized
and depend on the age and physical appearance of the patient, socio-cultural
explanation of the illness, diagnosis and experience of individual herbalist
(Addis et al., 2001). Despite the benefits derived from plants, some of them have some unpleasant
side effects which may be related to over doses. This may lead to acute toxicity
and death but when these problems are carefully addressed, will help to
harness the therapeutic potentials of medicinal plants for further drug
development in the future. In recent years, folk medicine is no more
an attraction to the younger generation; they are more dependent on western
medicine. They are unable to recognize the herbs and possess very little
knowledge on traditional herbal remedy. Nowadays many young people migrate to
urban areas for education and job opportunities. As a consequence, only the
elder people possess the knowledge of herbs and it is estimated only a
handful of people are able to use the traditional remedy to treat illness.
Thus, the traditional knowledge is rapidly eroding (Lin, 2005). In
conclusion, this study has shown that the area/region is diversified in
medicinal plant species and more research work should be carried out here to
evaluate the phytochemical and pharmacological
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