Plantas medicinales empleadas en el núcleo familiar para tratar enfermedades relacionadas al COVID-19, en el cantón Piñas, provincia El Oro

Abstract

Abstract: The present study refers to the traditional knowledge of medicinal plants for the treatment of Covid-19 in rural and urban parishes of Piñas canton, El Oro province. A semi-structured interview was applied, recording information on parts used, uses, forms of preparation and informants' data. The information was analyzed by means of ethnobotanical and statistical indexes, which allowed us to know the informants' consensus factor, citation frequency, level of fidelity and the relationship between use and characteristics of the informants. It was determined that there are 40 species and 28 families, used in 24 ailments and symptoms related to Covid-19. No significant differences were found with respect to the uses and characteristics of the informants. The species Eucalyptus globulus Labill. and Zingiber officinale Rosc. are the most culturally accepted for their benefits as expectorants and to combat Covid-19. The great diversity of species available to the population may provide relevant information for the search of candidate drugs to be tested against human viruses that may favor pandemics in the future.