Abstract
Chemical treatments for diarrhoea usually lead to side effects, so humans are seeking out a safe pharmaceutical source to cure them. From ancient times, medicinal plants have served as an important pharmaceutical source for the treatment of various acute and chronic diseases and infectious and non-infectious diseases. This study was carried out from April 2017 to February 2018 by interviewing with and administering a questionnaires to 29 traditional therapists. The questionnaire also included demographic items. The interviewers referred to the participants in person and asked them certain questions to elicit their beliefs about herbal medicine. Data were finally analyzed by the Excel software. In this study, the frequency of plant use was calculated by using a formula. According to the ethnobotanical knowledge of the region under study, Astragalus hamosus L., Ziziphora taurica M.Bieb., Anthemis hyalina DC., Plantago major L., Quercus brantii Lindl., Myrtus communis L., Satureja bachtiarica Bung., Glycyrrhiza glabra L., Peganum harmala L., Rheum ribes L., Rumex pulcher L., Artemisia absinthium, Descurainia sophia (L.) Prantle., Plantago major L. and some others medicinal plants are used as antidiarrhoeal medicinal plants. Most plant species reported belong to the Asteraceae family and the aerial part (36%) is the most frequently used plant organ for cases of diarrhoea in Shahrekord. The scientific registration and review of the written and non-written knowledge of different ethnicities in Iran regarding traditional medicine will help preserve the valuable treasure of thousands of years of Iranians’ medical knowledge and experience and will provide the basis for the discovery of new drugs and the progress of the pharmaceutical industry.
Highlights
Diarrhoea remains the leading cause of death in children under the age of five [1, 2]
Chemical treatments for diarrhoea usually lead to side effects, so humans are seeking out a safe pharmaceutical source to cure them
This cross-sectional, ethnobotanical study was done by collecting indigenous knowledge of traditional therapists in Shahrekord (Fig. 1) using a questionnaire to identify medicinal plants in the region with anti-diarrhoeal effects in children
Summary
Diarrhoea remains the leading cause of death in children under the age of five [1, 2]. Each child develops diarrhoea six or seven times on average each year [3]. Diarrhoea-accompanying diseases affect children's health substantially [4]. The causes of diarrhoea are usually viral, bacterial or parasitic infections affecting the digestive tract [5, 6]. Shortage of water and lack of observing health principles, lack of education and personal hygiene, malnutrition and immune disorder due to HIV are major causes of diarrhoeal disease in developing countries [6]. The disease is more prevalent in developing countries In these countries, children get diarrhoea on average 5 times a year [4,5,6]
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