Medicinal plants, an alternative for treating illnesses in the Buenavista People's Council in Cienfuegos

Abstract

A descriptive, cross-sectional observational study was conducted between January and May2024, with the aim of identifying plants that have been and continue to beused as medicine by the population as an alternative due to thelack of conventional medicines and, above all, the effect that theiruse as traditional medicine has on the health of the urban population of theof Buena Vista, Cienfuegos. The information was collected through 60 surveysadministered to family doctors, local pharmacy workers, and residents,in order to analyze the use of traditional medicine as an alternative tothe lack of conventional medicine. The results indicated that the most prevalent diseases were high blood pressure, diabetes,kidney failure, and colds, while plants were also used to treat pediculosis and scabies. Seventy-six medicinal species were identifiedbelonging to 46 botanical families, the most representative beingAsteraceae, Lamiaceae, Rutaceae, and Malvaceae. Guava (Psidium guajava L.) had the highest index of use value (IVU)and significant use (UST), along with lime (Justiciapectoralis Jacq.), red mamey (Pouteriasapota Jacq.), French oregano (Plectranthusamboinicus Lour), and chamomile (Matricariarecutita L.). It was therefore concluded that the use of medicinal plantsis an alternative for combating different diseases in the absenceof medicines for their treatment.