International Journal of Biodiversity Science and Management
Volume 5, Issue 2, 2009, Pages 76-82

The use of medicinal plants in healthcare practices by Rohingya refugees in a degraded forest and conservation area of Bangladesh (Article)

Khana M.A.S.A. , Ahmed Mukul S.* , Salim Uddin M. , Golam Kibria M. , Sultana F.
  • a Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh
  • b Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh
  • c Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh, Natural Resource Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
  • d Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh
  • e Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh

Abstract

People in developing countries traditionally rely on plants for their primary healthcare. This dependence is relatively higher in forests in remote areas due to the lack of access to modern health facilities and easy availability of the plant products.We carried out an ethno-medicinal survey in Teknaf Game Reserve (TGR), a heavily degraded forest and conservation area in southern Bangladesh, to explore the diversity of plants used by Rohingya refugees for treating various ailments. The study also documented the traditional utilization, collection and perceptions of medicinal plants by the Rohingyas residing on the edges of this conservation area. We collected primary information through direct observation and by interviewing older respondents using a semi-structured questionnaire. A total of 34 plant species in 28 families were frequently used by the Rohingyas to treat 45 ailments, ranging from simple headaches to highly complex eye and heart diseases. For medicinal preparations and treating various ailments, aboveground plant parts were used more than belowground parts. The collection of medicinal plants was mostly from the TGR. © 2009 Taylor & Francis.

Author Keywords

Diversity Teknaf Game Reserve healthcare Medicinal plants Rohingyas

Index Keywords

perception habitat fragmentation cohort analysis habitat conservation refuge questionnaire survey Bangladesh ethnobotany Chittagong [Bangladesh] medicinal plant developing world species diversity health services Teknaf Game Reserve
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-78649736852&doi=10.1080%2f17451590902978855&partnerID=40&md5=e1432b38baf778cfb29ef5cb657bad23
DOI: 10.1080/17451590902978855
ISSN: 17451590
Cited by: 13
Original Language: English