Abstract
Background Despite the growing body of ethnobotanical studies in Europe, publications are scarce in Lithuania. Ethnobotanical study in Kaišiadorys district is one of the few from this field done in Lithuania. Lithuania is divided into five ethnographic regions, and Kaišiadorys district is an area which borders with the three of them (Aukštaitija, Dzūkija, and Suvalkija), which determines the ethnographic distinctiveness of the area. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of cultivated medicinal plants, their families and pharmaceutical forms used in Kaišiadorys district, Lithuania, and to assess the conformity of medicinal plant materials used by respondents with the recommendations for medicinal plant materials in the World Health Organization monographs. MethodsThe field work was conducted in periods of time from July 2016 to October 2017. During this ethnobotanical research, 30 people were interviewed, 25 of whom agreed to communicate. The average age of respondents was 65 years. Information was collected using semistructured and structured interviews. The obtained information was recorded indicating ethnic names of plants, their preparation techniques, parts used, modes of administration, and application for therapeutic purposes. Results Respondents mentioned 71 species of cultivated medicinal plants from 38 families, used for therapeutic purposes and indicated which parts of the plant they use, how they prepare them, indications for use, and ways of administration. The most commonly cited families were Asteraceae (20.5%), Lamiaceae (13.9%), and Apiaceae (12.8%); most popular plants, cited more than 20 times, were Tilia cordata L., Matricaria recutita L., Calendula officinalis L., Carum carvi L., and Artemisia absinthium L. The frequently used plant parts were flowers (mentioned 35.8%), leaves (16.3%), roots and tubers (16.1%), herb (14.8%), and seeds (7.0%). Diseases most frequently treated were digestive (21.5% of citations), respiratory (21.3 % of citations), mental and behavioral (11.0%) disorders, certain infections and parasitic diseases (10.1%), and diseases of genitourinary system (9.1%). Conclusions Only 19 of the cultivated medicinal plant species mentioned by interviewed persons are described in the World Health Organization monographs. This means that the remaining 52 species are used without the World Health Organization approved medical indications, based solely on the folk medicine knowledge and experience. This study showed that the folk use of plants is strongly rooted in daily practice in the studied area.
Highlights
To the modern medicine with new medicines being developed and improved, there remains an interest in traditional ways of folk medicine
In the ethnobotanical survey in Kaisiadorys district, 25 respondents, 90% of whom lived in villages, were interviewed in the structured interviews
The authenticity of ethnopharmaceutical knowledge of Kaisiadorys district could have been influenced by the previous place of residence of the respondents, as it might be based on the knowledge from there, but majority of the respondents lived in Kaisiadorys district, and only 16% of them lived previously in another area
Summary
To the modern medicine with new medicines being developed and improved, there remains an interest in traditional ways of folk medicine. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of cultivated medicinal plants, their families and pharmaceutical forms used in Kaisiadorys district, Lithuania, and to assess the conformity of medicinal plant materials used by respondents with the recommendations for medicinal plant materials in the World Health Organization monographs. The field work was conducted in periods of time from July 2016 to October 2017 During this ethnobotanical research, 30 people were interviewed, 25 of whom agreed to communicate. 19 of the cultivated medicinal plant species mentioned by interviewed persons are described in the World Health Organization monographs This means that the remaining 52 species are used without the World Health Organization approved medical indications, based solely on the folk medicine knowledge and experience. This study showed that the folk use of plants is strongly rooted in daily practice in the studied area
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