The Local Migration of Plant-Based Medicines from Rural Communities to Gral. E. Aquino, Paraguay

Abstract

Rural Paraguay presents interesting opportunities for investigating the subtle differences in the use of medicinal plants across seasons and the urban versus rural dichotomy in a local setting. This study investigates three aspects of plant-based medicinal use in rural Paraguay: 1) seasonal differences and 2) differences between urban and rural residents and 3) the source of medicinal plants used to treat thirteen common ailments. Interviews performed in January through March 2015 and repeated in June through August 2015 revealed small differences between seasons and between places of residence but a larger homogeneity in the two populations, a homogeneity that stems from the recent migration of urban residents from nearby rural communities. We also found that the important cultural and preventive medicinal use of plant-based additions to yerba mate contributes to the similarities between the urban and rural populations. The findings suggest the continued strength of medicinal plant use going into the near future.

Yerba Mate (Ilex paraguariensis) Beverage: Nutraceutical Ingredient or Conveyor for the Intake of Medicinal Plants? Evidence from Paraguayan Folk Medicine

“…On a few occasions, male informants mentioned that they would drink tereré the whole year round, independently of the weather. These observations stay in line with reports from rural areas of Paraguay [ 23 , 26 ].…”

“…The importance of the yerba mate beverage as a vehicle for medicinal plants intake was also reported in another study from Paraguay. Goyke [ 26 ] stated that, for all the top scoring plants, yerba mate was either the typical or the exclusive way people consumed them. This shows how important yerba mate is medicinally, though not by its own virtue.…”

“…According to Goyke [ 26 ], some plants are associated with either the hot or the cold version because of their flavour. Bitter and sharp flavours such as wormwood and anís are preferred in hot drinks while smooth flavours like mint, lemon grass, and saffron are preferred with the cold version [ 26 ].…”

“…Some ethnobotanical studies from the south cone of South America report medicinal uses of yerba mate beverage [ 21 , 22 ]. Few ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological studies mention that various medicinal plants are consumed together with the yerba mate beverage by Mestizo and European migrants living in Argentina and Paraguay [ 23 – 26 ]. However, very little is known about how medicinal plants are combined with yerba mate beverage by local people.…”

“…However, very little is known about how medicinal plants are combined with yerba mate beverage by local people. Additionally, medicinal plant use by Paraguayan Mestizo people is poorly documented in the English-language scientific literature, with very few exceptions [ 23 , 26 – 30 ]. The documentation of medicinal plants and analysis of traditional knowledge related to the yerba mate beverage by Paraguayan Mestizo people is of paramount importance for two reasons: (1) apart from indigenous Guarani peoples, they have the longest tradition of using yerba mate and mixing it with medicinal plants; (2) The Paraguayan people are described in the literature as knowledgeable about medicinal plants [ 30 , 31 ].…”