A bandage consists of plant parts that are usually heated and applied topically to the affected area; they are often combined with over-the-counter aromatic balms and/or oils. However, no detailed information exists in the published literature about the prevalence of these mixtures versus single-plant remedies in the ethnomedicinal traditions of Caribbean cultures or their migrant communities. Ososki AL, Lohr P, Reiff M, Balick MJ, Kronenberg F, Fugh-Berman A, O’Connor B. Ethnobotanical literature survey of medicinal plants in the Dominican Republic used for women’s health conditions. Traditional medicine in the Dominican Republic is a reflection of the cultural history of the island and the diverse ethnic origin of its inhabitants (Bonnelly de Calventi et al., 1985). It represents a syncretic blending of Taino indigenous, African, and European traditions that includes elements of Catholicism, African tribal practices and indigenous heritage (Babington et al., 1999). It operates with concepts such as the hot-cold classification of illnesses and plant remedies, the humoral functioning of the body, the distinction between spiritual versus physical disease etiologies and the use of plants, psalms, saints, traditional healers and midwives for maintaining health and well-being, and curing illness.

Table 3 lists the different types of mixtures reported by participants when they described the herbal remedies used for particular health conditions, including the terms that they used for each type of preparation. The table also provides an overview of the relative frequency of these mixtures in use reports. The names either refer to the end-product or the form in which the remedies are administered . Percentage of mixtures in plant use reports according to specific health conditions .

In spite of the variation in plant knowledge that exists in ethnobotanical data, we found that Dominicans’ ethnoclassification of health conditions based on the use of plant mixtures corresponds fairly well with the biomedical taxonomy of these conditions. Two limitations of the current analysis were that only plants used in mixtures were taken into account and that the analysis was limited to ten health conditions that were frequently treated with mixtures. Including single plant remedies and more health conditions is likely to yield a more comprehensive insight rank fortress digital agency reviews into the “emic” classification of health conditions. Further research has to elucidate the reasons behind the transnational and lay-versus-specialist related differences that were observed in the clustering of health conditions within the category of reproductive and genitourinary health. One of the clusters that groups labor, menstrual problems, infertility, sexually transmitted diseases and vaginal infections closely together may be related to the use of plants with the purpose to “cleanse the blood” , a concept that is popular in Dominican ethnomedicine.

An herbal remedy can be composed of only one plant species or several plants combined together as a mixture that can also include non-plant ingredients. For the purpose of this paper, we define a mixture as any herbal remedy that consists of a minimum of two plant species. One popular Dominican herbal preparation is known as the botella, a bottled herbal mixture that consists of a combination of plant parts or exudates from different plant species, culinary spices and frequently also non-plant ingredients.

News-Medical.Net provides this medical information service in accordance with these terms and conditions. Please note that medical information found on this website is designed to support, not to replace the relationship between patient and physician/doctor and the medical advice they may provide. Gomez-Beloz A, Chavez N. The botánica as a culturally appropriate health care option for Latinos.

Volpato G, Godinez D, Beyra A, Barreto A. Uses of medicinal plants by Haitian immigrants and their descendants in the Province of Camaguey. Allen R, Cushman LF, Morris S, Feldman J, Wade C, McMahon D, Moses M, Kronenberg F. Use of complementary and alternative medicine among Dominican emergency department patients. This application contains more than 50 medicinal juices to treat various health problems such as (diabetes, hypertension, improving eyesight, memory, fighting the flu, cleaning the kidneys and colon, anemia, acne, anxiety and also to prevent cancer. ).

Other types of traditional Dominican mixtures that combine plants in formulas and recipes of varying complexities have also been reported, including teas, bebedizos and aromatic baths (baños) (Avila Suero, 1988; Brendbekken, 1998; Ososki, 2004). A popular method of preparing a mixture involves boiling plant ingredients together in water (i.e. a decoction), a practice commonly referred to as making a tea . A use report was categorized under “tomar” if no further details were mentioned during interviews. Often this referred to either a tea preparation, a juice or a syrup, which leads to some degree of overlap with other categories. A syrup consists of different leafy and bulbous vegetables or other plants that are sliced and mixed together with lemon/lime juice and/or honey.