DISTRIBUTION AND USE IN FOLK MEDICINE OF PLANTS OF THE GENUS YARROW (ACHILLEA L.)

Abstract

This article presents an overview of the use in folk medicine of yarrow (Achillea L.) genus plants. The purpose of the review is to systematize and summarize the existing scientific data on the ethnopharmaceutical use and distribution of yarrow species. Yarrow is a genus of herbaceous plants known for its medicinal properties and wide use in folk and contemporary medicine. The genus Achillea, one of the most famous genera of this Asteraceae family, has about 150 species growing throughout the northern hemisphere, 14 species of which are found on the territory of Kazakhstan. The data being reviewed show a wide range of uses for Achillea plants ranging from central nervous system diseases to gastrointestinal disorders. It is noted that only three Kazakh species of yarrow are known to be used in folk medicine: A. filipendulina, A. millefolium, A. nobilis. At the same time, only A. filipendulina has found application in local folk practice as a remedy for gastrointestinal diseases and as an abortive agent. According to this observation, it was accepted that the species of A. filipendulina is of significant scientific and practical interest as an object of research.