Plantas medicinales comercializadas en los mercados y ferias libres del cantón Ambato

Abstract

Abstract: The study was carried out in the Ambato canton. The trade in medicinal plants of the local markets, through a semi-structured interview. The demographic analysis reveals the predominant participation of women and diversity in educational levels among merchants. The prevalence of categories such as digestive system disorders reflects the prevalence of uses and trade of certain species. Regarding the Level of Fidelity, the results indicate that the species under study are particularly relevant and consistently used to treat certain medical indications within the community studied; For its part, the ICF analysis reveals that there is a moderate consensus among informants for most categories, suggesting some uniformity in the traditional knowledge of the community in relation to the use of medicinal plants for different medical disorders; According to the statistical analysis, it was determined that there is correlation between the variables species sold and age. The findings underscore the importance of considering sustainability in collection and marketing, providing a basis valuable for future conservation initiatives.