Uso de plantas medicinales que se comercializanen Guayaquil, Ecuador

Abstract

The use of medicinal plants has been an ancestral custom that, despite advances in science and medical advances, continues to be part of popular culture in many cities of Latin America. The present work seeks to publicize the popular use of medicinal plants by the population of the city of Guayaquil. The municipal markets in which medicinal plants are sold were identified, then a semi-structured survey was applied to gather information on the use of medicinal plants. It was determined that of the 34 public markets in the city, the study product is sold in 10 of them, the largest amount in the north and center of the city. Most of the vendors only have primary education and all of them are native to the Ecuadorian highlands, while the most cited plants are horsetail, and boldo, followed by rue and dandelion. It was determined that in urban areas the consumption of medicinal plants is maintained at a certain percentage, in addition, the ancestral knowledge about the use of medicinal plants is evidenced, it is an oral tradition without physical record for its disclosure, for which it is in danger of disappearing over time