Survey of Plants Used by the Indigenous People of Ogbomoso Land for Ethnobotanical and Ethno-medicinal Purposes in South-Western Nigeria

Abstract

The majority of people in Sub-Saharan Africa utilize folkloric medicine for their primary health care needs. Despite this wide acceptance and use of herbal medicine a lot of traditional medicine knowledge is being lost till date. Thus, this survey aims at identifying and documenting the ethno-botanical and ethno-medicinal uses of plants as applied by the indigenous people of Ogbomoso land, South-Western Nigeria. The survey was carried out within Ogbomoso land in Oyo State, South[1]Western Nigeria comprising of 5 local government areas. Ethno-botanical and ethno-medicinal information was obtained from respondents through the use of in-depth semi-structured interviews, group discussions and field observations from November 2019 to December 2020. Appropriate statistical packages were used to analyze collected data. A total of 166 plant species distributed within 72 families and 158 genera were identified. Fabaceae (9.5%) was the most frequently used; whilst plants from the Amaranthaceae (3.0%) family were the least used. The reported plant species were used for the treatment/management of non-communicable (52.6%), communicable (4.2%) and both disease conditions (4.1%). Leaves (40.4%) most used plant part; decoctions (70.2%) most preferred method of preparation and orally the most favoured route of administration (88.7%). The study identified a variety of plant species used in the treatment/management of both communicable and non-communicable diseases conditions; and complements the ongoing activities of the Bioresources Development Centre, Ogbomoso towards identifying and documenting the region's indigenous bioresources in terms of herbal medicine. Information provided in this study will contribute to local, national and international efforts intended at documenting indigenous flora with medicinal benefits; and the possible production of a local pharmacopeia.