Use of medicinal plants by the population from Alfenas, Minas Gerais, Brazil

• Autor(a) principal: Ferreira, Amanda Carolina Correa
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Freire, Josiane Oliveira, Ferreira, Aline Maria de Souza, Silva, Michelle Cristina Alves, Silva, Marcelo Aparecido da, Silva, Geraldo Alves da, Vieira, Liliana Batista, Reis, Tiago Marques
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Revista Fitos
• Texto Completo: https://revistafitos.far.fiocruz.br/index.php/revista-fitos/article/view/1122
• topic: Complementary Therapies; Pharmaceutical services; Unified Health System; Terapias complementares; Assistência farmacêutica; Sistema Único de Saúde

The Ministry of Health has supported the implementation of phytotherapy in primary care. However, necessary to understand how medicinal plants are used in the community. The objective of the study was to know the profile of use of medicinal plants in a city in the south of Minas Gerais. A standardized questionnaire was applied to a sample (n = 422) of the population in public places. This is a descriptive study. The following inclusion criteria were considered: being over 18 years of age, living in the municipality where the study was conducted and having used medicinal plants at some point in life. The collected data were tabulated with double checking and analyzed using descriptive statistics. It was found that 61.8% of participants reported occasionally using medicinal plants to treat diseases. The medicinal plants most used by the population were: mint (21%); lemon balm (17%); chamomile (7.3%); lavender (4.3%) and boldo (4.1%). The main reasons for use mentioned were: soothing (21%), cold (10.6%), personal taste (9.2%) and food (8.8%). It is hoped that the results will serve to plan actions and consolidate this practice in health care in Alfenas, serving as a model for other Brazilian municipalities.