Isabel Maria Madaleno
Portuguese Tropical Institute Rua António Galvão, 2-1B. 2780-047 Oeiras, Portugal
Pharmacognosy Communications,2012,2,4,34-51.
DOI:10.5530/pc.2012.4.7
Published: Oct 2012
Type: Research Article
ABSTRACT
The struggle to maintain good health is twice as diffi cult among the less wealthy, underemployed and unemployed citizens. This contribution examines the organic cultivation of medicinal species in front and backyards and their uses in ten Latin American cities and metropolitan regions. Three main categories of affl ictions are analyzed: (1) mild diseases, such as cough, colds, indigestion, conjunctivitis and diarrhoea; (2) the chronic health problems asthma and rheumatism; (3) serious troubles such as glaucoma, diabetes and cancer. Ancestral and domestic treatment practices using native and exotic fl ora are listed for each of the researched countries – Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru, Mexico, Cuba and Costa Rica – in order to provide a guide for interested peoples.
Key Words: Latin America , traditional medicines , domestic medicines , ethnopharmacology , ethnomedicine