Table 5.
Similarity between present and past ethnomedicinal uses of important species
| Botanical name | Use reports in study area | Earlier use reports from Uttarakhand |
|---|---|---|
| Aconitum heterophyllum Wall. | Fever and vomiting | Fever, vomiting, and cough [21, 28, 51, 58] |
| Acorus calamus L. | *Inflammation and insect repellent | Arthritis, cancer, convulsions, diarrhea |
| Sprain | Dyspepsia, epilepsy [41, 43]; sprain [50] | |
| Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.) | Cuts and wounds | Cuts and wounds [31, 41] |
| Ajuga bracteosa Wall. ex Benth. | *Constipation | Fevers, diuretic [41] |
| Diuretic, fever | ||
| Ajuga parviflora Benth. | *Constipation, stone, throat infection in animal (Galghotu) | Headache, fever, stomach ache [51] |
| Fever, stomach ache | ||
| Allium sativum L. | *Joint pain (arthritis) | Muscular pain [43, 52]; ear pain [58] |
| Angelica glauca Edgew. | *Spices and condiment and herbal tea | Constipation, bronchitis, and stomach |
| Stomach ache, vomiting | Disorders, vomiting [31, 43, 50] | |
| Artemisia martima L. | Cuts, skin ailments, wounds | Skin ailments [51] |
| Asparagus racemosus Willd. | *Stimulant, tonic, and stomach ache | Leucorrhoea, headache, hysteria, ulcer, liver disorders [41, 43] |
| Berberis asiatica Roxb. ex DC | *Fever | Diabetes, jaundice [41] |
| Diabetes | ||
| Bergenia ciliata (Haw) Sternb | Urinary infection and stone | Fever, digestive disorders, skin diseases, urinary infection, and stone [16, 31] |
| Cannabis sativa L. | *Insect bite, stomach ache, purgative and laxative, warm effect in winters | Analgesic, cough, cold, sedative, narcotic, skin diseases [43] |
| Carminative, constipation | ||
| Centella asiatica L. | *Headache | Inflammatory infections, wounds [41, 43] |
| Citrus aurantifolia (Christm) Sw. | Cold, constipation, headache, herbal tea, source of vitamin “C,” and weight loss | Diarrhea, dysentery, fever, headache [53] |
| Citrus hystrix DC. | *Against poison, cold, removal of Ascaris (anti-parasitic) | Vomiting [52] |
| Coriandrum sativum L. | *Against poison | Stomachic and diuretic [43] |
| Curcuma longa L. | *Internal injury | Skin disorders, wound healing [43, 52] |
| Cough, cuts and wounds, and cosmetics | ||
| Cynoglossum zeylanicum Thunb. ex Lehm. | *Boils | Asthma, bronchitis, cough, vomiting [16, 54] |
| Dactylorhiza hatagirea (D.Don)Soo | Bleeding and wounds | Burns, cuts, checks bleeding [31, 41] |
| Dioscorea deltoidea Wall | Cough and cold | Cough, fever, urinogenital disorders [31, 41, 43, 51] |
| Drymaria cordata (L.) Willd. ex Schult | *Cough | Laxative [49]; bile complaints [51] |
| Duchesnea indica (Andrews) Focke | *Burns and removal of burn scars | Diarrhea, fever, leucorrhoea [54]; skin diseases [53] |
| Emblica officinalis Gaertn. | Diabetes, purgative and laxative, carminative, stomach ache, and source of vitamin “C” | Asthma, digestive disorders, hair fall [31]; dysentery, cholera, and jaundice [41, 51] |
| Euphorbia prolifera Ehrenb. ex Boiss | *Insect repellent | -- |
| Ficus palmata Forsk. | *Cuts and wounds | Lungs diseases, skin diseases [43, 49, 51] |
| Ficus roxburghii Wall. | *Acidity, source of vitamin “C” | Laxative [49] |
| Glycine max (L.) Merri | *Jaundice | -- |
| Hedychium spicatum Buch. Ham. ex Smith. | Anti-lice, cough, cosmetics, intestinal problems, purgative and laxative, carminative | Carminative, stomachic, liver complaints, fevers, vomiting, diarrhea, inflammation, snake bite [16, 41, 51] |
| Hordium vulgare L. | *Burns, warm, and nutritive effect | -- |
| Leucas lanata Benth | *Cough | Cuts, to check bleeding, wounds [51] |
| Mentha arvensis L. | Stomach ache and vomiting | Diarrhea, stomach ache [51, 55] |
| Micromeria biflora Benth. | *Fever | Joints pain, worm infested wounds [41] |
| Microtyloma uniflorum (Lam) Verdc. | Stone | Stone [52] |
| Momordica charantia L. | Diabetes | Jaundice, diabetes [43] |
| Ocimum basilicum L. | Cough and cold, fever, herbal tea, warm effect in winters | Cough, cold, fever [16] |
| Origanum vulgare L. | Cough and cold, fever, herbal tea, and wounds | Cold, diarrhea, fever, indigestion, influenza, menstrual disorder [43, 51] |
| Picrorhiza kurrooa Royle. | Abdominal pain, fever | Anemia, asthma, blood troubles, inflammation, jaundice [41]; fever, stomach ache [31]; abdominal pain, cataract [50, 51] |
| Plantago ovate Forsk. | Constipation, digestive problems, and diarrhea | Constipation, dysentery, and diarrhea [41] |
| Plantego lanceolata L. | *Removal of stomach worm of domestic animals | Dyspepsia, sore wounds, dysentery, purgative, mouth disease, and chicks [41] |
| Podophyllum hexandrum Royle | Wounds | Purgative, cancer [41]; wounds [31] |
| Polygonatum cirrhifolium (Wall.) | *Blood purifier, cuts, tonic, and wounds | Anemia, fever, bronchitis, general debility [ 54] |
| Polygonatum verticillatum L. | Carminative and wounds | Aphrodisiac, gastric complaints, nervine tonic, wound healing [43, 51] |
| Prunus persica Stokes. | *Headache | Ear infection of children [31]; antipyretic, brain tonic [21] |
| Psidium guajava L. | Mouth blisters (astringent) | Mouth blisters [51, 59] |
| Punica granatum L. | *Anemia, cough, cold, source of vitamin “C” | Diarrhea, dysentery, piles [41] |
| Ranunculus repens L. | *Boils and intestinal pains (Nas Palatana) | -- |
| Rephanus sativus L. | Jaundice | Jaundice [52] |
| Rheum emodi Wall. | Fever and wounds | Cuts, fracture, wounds [56] |
| Rhododendron arboreum Smth | Liver complaints, tonic | Heart tonic [31], stomach diseases [41] |
| Rosa moschata Hermm. | *Boils, cuts, eye diseases, wounds | Leucorrhoea, bleeding, pregnancy termination [16] |
| Rubia cordifolia L. | *Fever | Blood purifier, joints pain, leucorrhoea, cuts, wounds, insect sting [51] |
| Rubus ellipticus Smith. | *Fever and stomach ache | Blood pressure, diarrhea [41] |
| Saussurea costus (Falc.) Lipsch. | Cough, dysentery, fever, stomach ache | Asthma, cough, dysentery, fever [51, 55]; abdominal pain [58] |
| Setaria italic L. | *Chicken pox and measles | -- |
| Silene vulgaris (Moench) Garcke | *Fever and removal of Ascaris (anti-parasitic) | Asthma, bronchitis [16] |
| Swertia angustifolia Buch.-Ham. ex D.Don. | *Skin ailments | Pneumonia, cold, cough, fever [51] |
| Fever | ||
| Taraxacum officinale Weber. | *Snake bite and to increase lactation in mulching animals | Headache, acts as a heart tonic and blood purifier [28, 58] |
| Tegetus erecta L. | *Ear infection, fever, and wounds | Muscular pain, piles, ulcer, wound healing [43] |
| Terminalia chebula (Gaertner) Retz. | Carminative, constipation, digestive problems, diarrhea, purgative | Asthma, digestive problems, diarrhea, purgative [16, 31] |
| Thalictrum foliosum DC. | *Eye infection (white-dot-cataract), insect repellent | Gastric trouble, used to control external parasites [41] |
| Botanical name | Uses report in study area | Earlier uses report from Uttarakhand |
| Thymus serpyllum L. | *Asthma, joint pain, spices, and condiments | Laxative, stomachic [41]; cough, epilepsy, itching, and skin diseases |
| Digestive and stomach problems | Menstrual disorders, swelling [51] | |
| Trifolium repens L. | *Headache and skin disease of dogs | Astringent [16] |
| Trigonella foemun-graecum L. | Carminative, constipation, diabetes, indigestion, joint pain, and obesity | Diabetes, rheumatism [16, 52] |
| Urtica dioica L. | *Joint pain, warm and nutritive effect | Skin diseases, boils [31, 41]; bone fracture [51] |
| Verbascum thapsus L. | *To increase lactation in milching animals | Cough, fever, rheumatism [41]; boils eye cataract [51] |
| Boils | ||
| Viola betonicifolia J.E. Smith | *Snake bite | Blood diseases, cough, fever, skin [57] |
| Viola canescens Wall. Ex Roxb | *To increase lactation in milching animals | Cough, cold, malaria, jaundice [43, 49] |
| Vigna mungo L. | *Fracture | -- |
| Zanthoxylum armatum DC | Carminative, cough and cold, toothache, spices and condiments | Toothache [31]; constipation, gastric disorders [41, 43, 50] |
| Zingiber officinale Rosc. (Zingiberaceae) | Cough and cold | Asthma, cough, and cold [43] |
*New ethnomedicinal use reports documented from study sites