Consumption and utilization of fruits, leaves, and seeds of cola (pachycarpa and lepidota) in two southeastern States of Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Cola pachycarpa and Cola lepidota are two varieties of fruit known as Monkey cola. They are from the same plant family. The plant was predominantly found in the wild until recently. There is basic information on the leaves, seeds, and fruits of this plant. However, there is paucity of empirical studies on their consumption and utilization pattern.
 Objective: The study evaluated the consumption and utilization pattern of the leaves, fruits and seeds of these two varieties of Monkey Cola, pachycarpa and lepidota in two South-Eastern States of Nigeria.
 Materials and methods: The study adopted a cross-sectional survey. The survey employed a multi-stage random sampling technique to select 808 adults from different communities in Isiala Mbano local government area of Imo State and Isiala Ngwa South local government area of Abia State. A structured validated questionnaire was used to obtain information on consumption and utilization pattern of the fruits, leaves and seeds in the survey areas. Data was analysed statistically using IBM-SPSS (Special Package for Social Sciences) version 20 software.
 Results: Cola pachycarpa was more popular (84.5%) and the fruits were consumed mainly raw (99.0%). The leaves and seeds are not eaten but used for medicinal purposes, though the seeds ranked highest in this regard (48.3%).
 Conclusion: The fruits particularly Cola pachycarpa were popular. They were consumed raw while the leaves and seeds were solely used in traditional medicine.