Ina Vandebroek

Welcome to Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine

Ethnobiology is a multidisciplinary field of study that draws on approaches and methods from both the social and biological sciences. Ethnobiology aims at investigating culturally based biological and environmental knowledge, cultural perception and cognition of the natural world, and associated behaviours and practices. Ethnomedicine is concerned with the cultural interpretations of health, disease and illness and also addresses the health care seeking process and healing practices. Research interest and activities in the areas of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine have increased tremendously in the last decade. Since the inception of the disciplines, scientific research in ethnobiology and ethnomedicine has made important contributions to understanding traditional subsistence and medical knowledge and practice. The Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (JEE) invites manuscripts and reviews based on original interdisciplinary research from around the world on the inextricable relationships between human cultures and nature, on Traditional Environmental Knowledge (TEK), folk and traditional medical knowledge, as well as on the relevance of the above for Primary Health Care (PHC) policies in developing countries.

Comparison of health conditions treated with traditional and biomedical health care in a Quechua community in rural Bolivia

BackgroundThe objective of the present study was to reveal patterns in the treatment of health conditions in a Quechua-speaking community in the Bolivian Andes based on plant use data from traditional healers and patient data from a primary health care (PHC) service, and to demonstrate similarities and differences between the type of illnesses treated with traditional and biomedical health care, respectively.MethodsA secondary analysis of plant use data from semi-structured interviews with eight healers was conducted and diagnostic data was collected from 324 patients in the community PHC service. Health conditions were ranked according to: (A) the percentage of patients in the PHC service diagnosed with these conditions; and (B) the citation frequency of plant use reports to treat these conditions by healers. Healers were also queried about the payment modalities they offer to their patients.ResultsPlant use reports from healers yielded 1166 responses about 181 medicinal plant species, which are used to treat 67 different health conditions, ranging from general symptoms (e.g. fever and body pain), to more specific ailments, such as arthritis, biliary colic and pneumonia. The results show that treatment offered by traditional medicine overlaps with biomedical health care in the case of respiratory infections, wounds and bruises, fever and biliary colic/cholecystitis. Furthermore, traditional health care appears to be complementary to biomedical health care for chronic illnesses, especially arthritis, and for folk illnesses that are particularly relevant within the local cultural context. Payment from patients to healers included flexible, outcome contingent and non-monetary options.ConclusionTraditional medicine in the study area is adaptive because it corresponds well with local patterns of morbidity, health care needs in relation to chronic illnesses, cultural perceptions of health conditions and socio-economic aspects of health care. The quantitative analysis of plant use reports and patient data represents a novel approach to compare the contribution of traditional and biomedical health care to treatment of particular health conditions.

Cross-cultural adaptation in urban ethnobotany: The Colombian folk pharmacopoeia in London

AIM OF THE STUDY To investigate traditional health care practices and changes in medicinal plant use among the growing Colombian community in London. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ethnobotanical fieldwork consisted of qualitative, in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 23 Colombians living in London and botanical identification of 46 plant species actively used as herbal remedies. Subsequently, research data were compared with literature on ethnobotany and traditional herbal medicine in the home country, using a framework on cross-cultural adaptation, adjusted for the purpose of this study. RESULTS Similarities and discrepancies between data and literature are interpreted as potential indicators of continuity and loss (or deculturation) of traditional remedies, respectively. Remedies used in London that are not corroborated by the literature suggest possible newly acquired uses. CONCLUSIONS Cross-cultural adaptation related to health care practices is a multifaceted process. Persistence, loss and incorporation of remedies into the Colombian folk pharmacopoeia after migration are influenced by practical adaptation strategies as well as by symbolic-cultural motives of ethnic identity.

Cultural significance of medicinal plant families and species among Quechua farmers in Apillapampa, Bolivia

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Medicinal plant use was investigated in Apillapampa, a community of subsistence farmers located in the semi-arid Bolivian Andes. AIM OF THE STUDY The main objectives were to identify the culturally most significant medicinal plant families and species in Apillapampa. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 341 medicinal plant species was inventoried during guided fieldtrips and transect sampling. Data on medicinal uses were obtained from fifteen local Quechua participants, eight of them being traditional healers. RESULTS Contingency table and binomial analyses of medicinal plants used versus the total number of inventoried species per family showed that Solanaceae is significantly overused in traditional medicine, whereas Poaceae is underused. Also plants with a shrubby habitat are significantly overrepresented in the medicinal plant inventory, which most likely relates to their year-round availability to people as compared to most annual plants that disappear in the dry season. Our ranking of medicinal species according to cultural importance is based upon the Quality Use Agreement Value (QUAV) index we developed. This index takes into account (1) the average number of medicinal uses reported for each plant species by participants; (2) the perceived quality of those medicinal uses; and (3) participant consensus. CONCLUSIONS According to the results, the QUAV index provides an easily derived and valid appraisal of a medicinal plants cultural significance.

Globalization and Loss of Plant Knowledge: Challenging the Paradigm

The erosion of cultural knowledge and traditions as a result of globalization and migration is a commonly reported phenomenon. We compared one type of cultural knowledge about medicinal plants (number of plants reported to treat thirty common health conditions) among Dominican laypersons who self-medicate with plants and live in rural or urban areas of the Dominican Republic (DR), and those who have moved to New York City (NYC). Many plants used as medicines were popular Dominican food plants. These plants were reported significantly more often by Dominicans living in NYC as compared to the DR, and this knowledge was not age-dependent. These results contradict the popular paradigm about loss of cultural plant knowledge and is the first study to report a statistically measurable increase in this type of knowledge associated with migration.

What works in the field? : a comparison of different interviewing methods in ethnobotany with special reference to the use of photographs

Ethnobotanists use a variety of interview techniques to collect ethnobotanical data. Drawing upon the results from a quantitative ethnobotanical study in five Yuracaré and Trinitario communities in the Bolivian Amazon, the pros and cons of the following methods are evaluated: (1) interviews in situ during transects, walk-in-the-woods, and homegarden sampling; and (2) interviews ex situ with fresh plant material, voucher specimens, or plant photographs as reference tools. Although the systematic use of plant photographs for ethnobotanical interviews is poorly documented in literature, the results show that indigenoùs participants in our study recognize significantly more plant species from photographs than from voucher specimens. It is argued that, especially in remote and isolated study sites, photographs might be advantageous over voucher specimens.

The importance of botellas and other plant mixtures in Dominican traditional medicine.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Plant mixtures are understudied in ethnobotanical research. AIM OF THE STUDY To investigate the importance of plant mixtures (remedies consisting of at least two plants) in Dominican traditional medicine. MATERIALS AND METHODS A Spanish language questionnaire was administered to 174 Dominicans living in New York City (NYC) and 145 Dominicans living in the Dominican Republic (DR), including lay persons (who self-medicate with plants) and specialists (traditional healers). Plants were identified through specimens purchased in NYC botánica shops and Latino grocery shops, and from voucher collections. RESULTS The percentage of mixtures as compared to single plants in plant use reports varied between 32 and 41%, depending on the geographic location (NYC or DR) and participant status (lay person or specialist). Respiratory conditions, reproductive health and genitourinary conditions were the main categories for which Dominicans use plant mixtures. Lay persons reported significantly more mixtures prepared as teas, mainly used in NYC to treat respiratory conditions. Specialists mentioned significantly more botellas (bottled herbal mixtures), used most frequently in the DR to treat reproductive health and genitourinary conditions. Cluster analysis demonstrated that different plant species are used to treat respiratory conditions as compared to reproductive health and genitourinary conditions. Interview participants believed that combining plants in mixtures increases their potency and versatility as medicines. CONCLUSIONS The present study demonstrates the importance and complexity of plant mixtures in Dominican traditional medicine and the variation in its practices influenced by migration from the DR to NYC, shedding new light on the foundations of a particular ethnomedical system.

The Dual Intracultural and Intercultural Relationship between Medicinal Plant Knowledge and Consensus1

The Dual Intracultural and Intercultural Relationship between Medicinal Plant Knowledge and Consensus In the present manuscript, consensus analysis was applied to make an intracultural and intercultural comparison of medicinal plant knowledge in two groups of traditional healers from the Andes and Amazon regions in Bolivia, respectively. The ethnobotanical research methodology included field trips for plant collection in the presence of a healer and semistructured interviews, with dried and pressed plant specimens as a probe to ask questions about these plants’ medicinal uses (180 and 126 species in the Andes and Amazon, respectively). Plant use data were analyzed through calculation of the number of species known medicinally, an ethnobotanical index of consensus, and cluster analysis. The results point to a dual link between medicinal plant knowledge and consensus, which is positive at the group (cultural) level but negative at the level of the individual participant. As a group, Andean healers (N = 8) reported more medicinal plant uses and also agreed more often about these uses than their Amazonian peers (N = 7). However, an intracultural comparison shows that an individual healer who holds more plant knowledge often agrees less with other healers about the medicinal uses of these plants, and hence possesses a higher degree of idiosyncratic knowledge. These results demonstrate the challenge to extrapolate knowledge of individual participants to a community or even a cultural group. The careful selection of participants merits considerable attention before the start of fieldwork since interviewing the most knowledgeable healer in a community does not automatically imply that representative (general and commonly-shared) cultural information about medicinal plants will be recorded.La doble relación intracultural e intercultural entre el conocimiento sobre plantas medicinales y el consenso En el presente manuscrito, se aplicó un análisis de consenso para hacer una comparación intracultural e intercultural en relación al conocimiento sobre plantas medicinales en dos grupos de médicos tradicionales, inhabitantes de la región Andina y Amazónica de Bolivia, respectivamente. La metodología de investigación etnobotánica incluyó salidas al campo guiado por un médico tradicional para la colecta de plantas, y entrevistas semi-estructuradas con plantas secas y prensadas como soporte para hacer preguntas sobre los usos medicinales de estas especies (180 y 126 especies en la zona Andina y Amazónica, respectivamente). Datos sobre los usos de las plantas fueron analizados calculando el número de especies conocidas como medicina, un índice etnobotánico de consenso, y un análisis de cluster. Los resultados demuestran una doble relación entre el conocimiento sobre plantas medicinales y el consenso, lo cual es positiva al nivel del grupo (cultura), pero negativa al nivel del individuo (participante). Como grupo, los médicos tradicionales de la region Andina (N = 8) reportaron más usos medicinales para las plantas y también concordaron más frecuentemente sobre estos usos en comparación con los médicos tradicionales de la región Amazónica (N = 7). Sin embargo, una comparación intracultural demuestra que un médico tradicional que tiene más conocimiento sobre plantas medicinales muchas veces está menos de acuerdo con los demás médicos tradicionales sobre los usos medicinales que se dan a estas plantas, y entonces posee un nivel más alto de conocimiento idiosincrático. Estos resultados demuestran el desafío para extrapolar conocimiento que pertenece a un indivíduo hacía una comunidad o cultura. Por lo tanto, la selección cautelosa de participantes merece mucha atención antes del comienzo del trabajo de campo porque entrevistando al médico tradicional más conocido en una comunidad no implica automaticamente la recopilación de información representativa de la comunidad o cultura (información ampliamente compartida dentro de la comunidad y de carácter general).

Local knowledge: Who cares?

Think globally, act locally Local Knowledge Systems (LKS) consist of the knowledge, beliefs, traditions, practices, institutions, and worldviews developed and sustained by indigenous and local communities, and are believed to represent an adaptive strategy to the environment in which these communities live. The value of LKS has been contested by some scholars as being restricted to local issues [1], and local knowledge holders have alternative been labeled as “guardians of the earth”, “conservationists”, or as subsistence consumers who will no longer coexist sustainably with the environment when their populations increase, and as they become more integrated into market economies [2-4]. LKS have sometimes been viewed as “traditional”, with the negative connotation of being outdated or primitive, and thus of little use to solve problems of modern society [5]. Others have put forward that the adaptive nature, applicability and value of LKS need to be empirically tested and validated by science [6,7]. In this Thematic Series, we focus on the potential and actual value of LKS to local and global challenges. The catchphrase of this paragraph, “Think globally, act locally,” has been around for a few decades as a slogan for activism at the local level to increase overall wellbeing on earth. In an increasingly globalized society with many social, economic and environmental uncertainties, what are the lessons that can be drawn from LKS? One of the virtues of LKS is that these systems depart from the premise of interconnectedness and embeddedness, whereby humans and their behaviors are seen as part of a broader environmental, socio-cultural and spiritual context. The ethnobiological literature showcases several examples that demonstrate the importance and usefulness of LKS for community health, nutrition, education and cultural heritage, conservation and other societal challenges, as we will review in the next paragraphs. This Thematic Series of the Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine contains solicited manuscripts based on new research that continues to demonstrate the potential and established value of ethnobiological knowledge and its associated plant and animal resources for local communities and society at large, especially in the areas of community health, education and conservation.

Medicinal plants used for menstrual disorders in Latin America, the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia and their uterine properties: a review.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Menstrual disorders are generally not perceived as major health concerns by global health organizations, despite being disruptive to women׳s daily activities, particularly when access to sanitary facilities or analgesics is limited. Improving menstrual health requires access to safe and effective medication, but many women in Latin America, Africa or Asia prefer traditional medicine above modern remedies (such as contraceptives), as they can cause physical symptoms associated with fertility loss. Many medicinal plants are used for menstrual disorders, but few have been examined for their pharmacological activities related to traditional uses. Plants that have a smooth muscle-relaxant effect could ease menstrual cramps, but there are indications that dysmenorrhea in low-income countries is commonly treated with emmenagogues. This review aims to assess the most salient plants used to treat menstrual morbidity in Latin America and the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia, their uterine properties and adverse effects. To test whether plants used for painful menstruation could have uterine contracting properties, we recorded whether these species were also used to ease birth, induce menstruation, abortion or expel the afterbirth, as these suggest spasmogenic activities. MATERIALS AND METHODS We reviewed the literature documenting traditional plant use in the study area for dysmenorrhea, regulating or inducing menstruation, uterine cleansing, uterine fibroids, expelling the placenta and lochia and for easing childbirth. Thirty genera (59 species) used in at least two continents or frequently throughout one continent, where shortlisted from the 90 most salient plant species emerging from our literature review. Using Medline, we searched for pharmacological properties and/or mechanisms of action relevant to their traditional uses of the shortlisted species. We searched VigiBase™, the WHO global individual case safety report database, on reported adverse drug reactions associated with these species. RESULTS More than 2000 plant species are used for menstrual disorders in the study area. The most salient uses are to treat painful menstruation, induce or regulate menses, and induce abortion. Around half (29) of the 59 most salient species have been tested for their pharmacological effects, of which 48% act as uterine spasmolytics and 31% as uterine spasmogenics. Several frequently used species contain toxic constituents, which may put women and their unborn children at serious risk. VigiBase(TM) listed adverse drug reactions for 18 of these species, but few reports came from the study area. CONCLUSIONS Research into the risks and benefits of medicinal plants for menstrual complaints should be given a higher priority in reproductive health programs that respect traditional knowledge and practices. Increased data collection is needed on adverse drug reactions among women using herbal medicines for reproductive health, especially in countries with limited reproductive health facilities.