Volume 146, Issue 1, 7 March 2013, Pages 127–153
Medical ethnobotany of the Chayahuita of the Paranapura basin (Peruvian Amazon)
Abstract
Ethnopharmacological relevance
Up
until now, the plant pharmacopoeia of the Chayahuita, an ethnic group
from the Peruvian Amazon, has been poorly defined. This paper details
the uses of medicinal plants within this community, as recorded in two
villages of the Paranapura basin, Soledad and Atahualpa de Conchiyacu.
This study aimed to describe the basis of the Chayahuita traditional
medical system, to document part of the medicinal plant corpus, and to
compare it with data from other Amazonian ethnic groups.
Material and methods
Methodology
was based (i) on field prospection with 26 informants (ethnobotanical
walks methodology), (ii) semi-structured interviews including 93 people
(49 men and 44 women) focused on the most recent health problem
experienced and on the therapeutic options chosen, (iii) individual or
group thematic discussions relating to disease and treatments, (iv)
6-months of participants' observations between May 2007 and May 2008. At
the end of the project in May 2008 a workshop was organized to
cross-check the data with the help of 12 of the most interested
informants.
Results
Six hundred
and seventeen voucher specimens were collected, corresponding to 303
different species, from which 274 (belonging to 83 families) are
documented here. Altogether 492 recipes were recorded, corresponding to a
global figure of 541 therapeutic uses and a total of 664 use reports.
The main therapeutic uses are related to dermatological problems (103
uses; 19%), gastro-intestinal complaints (69 uses; 13%) and
malaria/fevers (52 uses; 10%). Diseases are analysed according to
Chayahuita concepts, and for each disease the species having a high
frequency of citation are listed, and the most frequently used remedies
are described. Whenever possible, comparisons with other Amazonian
groups have been drawn.
Conclusion
Chayahuita
nosology and medical ethnobotany appear to draw their inspiration from a
common panamazonian root. Despite the fact that a certain number of
medicinal plants are shared with other nearby groups, there seem to be
specific uses for some species, thus highlighting the originality of the
Chayahuita pharmacopoeia. Presently there is a certain disinterest in
the most traditional area of the Chayahuita medical ways, and the role
of the penutu (shaman) seems to be
less highly-valued than in the past. Nonetheless, the use of medicinal
plants in phytotherapeutic treatment is very much a living, shared
knowledge.
Graphical abstract
Keywords
- Medicinal plant;
- Traditional medicine;
- Chayahuita;
- Peru;
- Amazon;
- Pharmacopeia
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
