Socio-demographic determinants of traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in the Andean region of Ecuador

Background: Ethnobotany studies provide preservation of traditional knowledge related with plant use with a pharmacovigilance prospective, where socio-demographic and educational factors have shaped traditional knowledge of medicinal plants at a broad level. Methods: This study presents information on the use of medicinal plants and their relationship with socio-demographic factors in six Andean localities in northern and southern Ecuador. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with different population groups, 665 interviews were conducted (472 women and 193 men), including age, region, gender, level of education, species, morphological structures used, health disorders treated, mode of preparation, and use. Quantitative ethnobotanical indices as Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) and Fidelity Level (FL) were calculated. Results: A total of 187 medicinal plants belonging to 70 families and 149 genera were reported, with Asteraceae and Lamiaceae being the families with the highest number of species. Gender and age were determining factors in the use of medicinal plants. The most used plant parts were stem, young branch, bark (48.2%) and whole plant (13.8%) and the most used forms of preparation were infusions, juices and decoctions. Twenty-four disease categories were reported, where the main categories were inflammation and digestive infections (47.4%). Most species were used by a large proportion of informants for each disease category (ICF ≥ 0.65). The diversity of medicinal plant species and the traditional knowledge associated with them are of considerable value to communities in northern and southern Ecuador. Conclusions: Species (stems, leaves, branches and bark) may have potential in the treatment of anti-tumour and anti-inflammatory diseases related to the treatment of major disorders such as infection and inflammation of the stomach, liver, kidneys, urinary tract, cancer and internal tumors. Gender, age and region were determining factors in the knowledge about the use of plants to treat anti-tumour and anti-inflammatory diseases. Keywords: Ethno-medicine; Ethnobotanical survey; gender, medicinal plants; biodiversity; Ecuador

Ethnobotany · Lamiaceae · Medicinal plants · Plant species · Population · Traditional knowledge · Ethnobotanical and Medicinal Plants Studies

• Human Life History is Shaping Embodied Medicinal Plant Knowledge Across the Lifespan

  Open Access•Jorge Izaquiel Alves De Siqueira, Patrícia Muniz De Medeiros et al.•Human Nature•2026

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