Popular knowledge of medicinal plants in a municipality in the Vale do Jequitinhonha, Minas Gerais

Abstract

The study aimed to identify popular knowledge about the use of medicinal plants in the territory of a Basic Health Unit in a municipality in the Jequitinhonha Valley, Minas Gerais. This is a cross-sectional, observational, quantitative study, with an objective instrument applied to heads of household in the area (10% of families selected and households drawn by lot) – approved by the Research Ethics Committee. It was observed that 82.63% of the participants have medicinal plants at home, 42.04% of them use between four and six plants, and 43.16% think that they have no side effects/toxicity. Those who used medicinal plants reported that their knowledge came from family members, and only 1.91% received guidance from health professionals. Knowledge and practices about medicinal plants were identified, considering the biodiversity of the Cerrado, and the Popular Pharmacopoeia the best known: barbatimão and ipê-roxo. Lack of knowledge about the effects of medicinal plants on the body was the reason for non-adherence cited by 42.42% of participants. The results showed the possibility of using medicinal plants as a complementary therapy in the family health strategy, which could be implemented safely and sustainably, valuing the socio-biodiversity of the Cerrado through the Living Pharmacy Program Strategy.