Background: Folk medicine, despite its enormous potential, is possibly the most overlooked medicinal system in the world. Folk medicinal practitioners (FMPs) are considered outdated, unscientific, and even looked down upon as mere charlatans. Yet not only conventional/allopathic medicine but also more systematic forms of traditional medicines (like Ayurveda, Unani Siddha, and homeopathy) owe a lot towards adopting folk medicinal use of plants and formulations. The objective of the present study was to collect data on plants used by FMPs in a section of Pabna district, Bangladesh and to determine whether the uses of a given plant(s) by the FMPs can be scientifically rationalized based on available scientific reports. Methods and findings: Information was collected from a father-son duo FMPs practicing in the eastern Madhupur region of Pabna district in Bangladesh. Both FMPs were informed in details as to the objectives of our repeated visits. Importance was given to obtaining permission to converse with them, take pictures, and to publish any collected information both internationally and nationally. Plants as shown by the FMPs were photographed and plant specimens collected, dried and identified by a trained botanist. Information on only fourteen plants were obtained strongly suggesting that FMPs are possibly a disappearing breed along with their generation-wise orally transmitted medicinal plant knowledge. Conclusions: Comparison of the medicinal uses of the plants by the FMPs and comparing such uses with published pharmacological activity reports on the plants indicate that the FMPs used the plants in a rational manner. The major difference between the FMPs use of a medicinal plant and conventional medicines is that FMPs usually use a plant or plant part wholly versus the conventional method of isolating and identifying the bio-active plant constituent and using it as a drug.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.