{"title":"Ethnomedicinal Plants Used for Skin Care in Sirmour District of Himachal Pradesh (India)","authors":"Parul Singhal , Preeti Dobhal","doi":"10.1016/j.hermed.2025.101004","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>The study aimed to explore the Indigenous knowledge regarding the utilisation of medicinal plants for curing skin diseases in rural pockets of Sirmour district of Himachal Pradesh as the study area was unexplored till date. The main purpose of the study is to unfold the asset of traditional medicinal plants and make it accessible to others for further usage.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Facts on ethnomedicinal plants were recorded after the intensive field visits and surveys of 390 households of 69 villages using semistructured interviews and group discussions by standard questionnaires. All the collected data were analysed by informant consensus factor, fidelity level, use value, and relative frequency citation.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The current research reported 73 ethnomedicinal plants of 39 families being utilised in skin cure. Maximum used method of preparation includes poultice (44.16%) while the utmost plants are used for curing injuries, cuts, and wounds (27%). The highest informant consensus factor value 0.93 was reported for ringworm disease. The highest fidelity level was reported for <em>Euphorbia hirta</em> (77.63%). In the study, 18 plants for curing skin ailments were reported for the first time.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>These findings indicate that utilisation of Indigenous traditional herbal medicine is a well-established practice in Sirmour district to explore the original vicinity. However, plants were reported to be used unsustainably. The observation generated by this research creates scientific curiosity regarding further studies to assess the efficacy with modern assays, which will provide substantive benefits to society.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56077,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Herbal Medicine","volume":"50 ","pages":"Article 101004"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Herbal Medicine","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2210803325000156","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"INTEGRATIVE & COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Introduction
The study aimed to explore the Indigenous knowledge regarding the utilisation of medicinal plants for curing skin diseases in rural pockets of Sirmour district of Himachal Pradesh as the study area was unexplored till date. The main purpose of the study is to unfold the asset of traditional medicinal plants and make it accessible to others for further usage.
Methods
Facts on ethnomedicinal plants were recorded after the intensive field visits and surveys of 390 households of 69 villages using semistructured interviews and group discussions by standard questionnaires. All the collected data were analysed by informant consensus factor, fidelity level, use value, and relative frequency citation.
Results
The current research reported 73 ethnomedicinal plants of 39 families being utilised in skin cure. Maximum used method of preparation includes poultice (44.16%) while the utmost plants are used for curing injuries, cuts, and wounds (27%). The highest informant consensus factor value 0.93 was reported for ringworm disease. The highest fidelity level was reported for Euphorbia hirta (77.63%). In the study, 18 plants for curing skin ailments were reported for the first time.
Conclusions
These findings indicate that utilisation of Indigenous traditional herbal medicine is a well-established practice in Sirmour district to explore the original vicinity. However, plants were reported to be used unsustainably. The observation generated by this research creates scientific curiosity regarding further studies to assess the efficacy with modern assays, which will provide substantive benefits to society.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Herbal Medicine, the official journal of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists, is a peer reviewed journal which aims to serve its readers as an authoritative resource on the profession and practice of herbal medicine. The content areas of the journal reflect the interests of Medical Herbalists and other health professionals interested in the clinical and professional application of botanical medicines. The objective is to strengthen the research and educational base of herbal medicine with research papers in the form of case studies, original research articles and reviews, monographs, clinical trials and relevant in vitro studies. It also publishes policy statements, opinion pieces, book reviews, conference proceedings and profession related information such as pharmacovigilance reports providing an information source for not only the Herbal Practitioner but any Health professional with an interest in phytotherapy.