Although traditional medicine plays an important role in ethiopian society, knowledge about the. The practice of traditional medicine varies widely, in keeping with the societal and cultural heritage of. The present paper is an overview of the literature reporting the use of these plants for cancer treatment. In ethiopia, there is a long history of using medicinal plants to treat a variety of ailments kibebew 2001. Harmful traditional practices in ethiopia united against. Medicinal plants of the shinasha, agewawi and amhara peoples in northwest ethiopia. Plants have been used as a source of medicine in ethiopia from time immemorial to treat different ailments.
Promoting traditional medicine in ethi opia 197 in june 1980, the first national symposium on traditional medicine was held in addis ababa in which representatives of both traditional and modern medicine participated 46. Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by oromo people, ghimbi district, southwest ethiopia balcha abera 0 0 department of biology, college of natural sciences, jimma university, jimma, ethiopia background. Trends and challenges of traditional medicine in africa. However, available research evidence on indigenous antimalarial plants is highly fragmented in the country. If you dont see any interesting for you, use our search form on bottom v.
Ethiopia has 28 public and 6 private medical colleges. To facilitate the objective assessment of official policy, the nature and historical origins of ethiopian traditional medicine is examined briefly. Although traditional medicine plays an important role in ethiopian society, knowledge. Traditional medicine in ethiopia iv preface traditional medicine may be defined as diverse health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plants, animalsandor mineralbased medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises applied singularly or in combination to maintain wellbeing. Alemtsehay zergaw, programme associate, communications, from the ywca of ethiopia, participated in one of these events. In ethiopia, up to 80% of the population use traditional medicine for primary health care.
Both oral and dermal routes permit rapid physiological reaction of the. A very important book on ethiopian traditional medicine. In ethiopia, 70% of human and 90% of livestock population depends on traditional medicine. In africa up to 80% of the population uses traditional medicine to help meet their health care needs. They are used for thousands of years to flavor and conserve food. A majority of ethiopians rely on traditional medicine as their primary form of. In many parts of rural africa, traditional healers prescribing medicinal plants are the most easily accessible and affordable health resource available to the local community and at times the only therapy that subsists. Ethiopia is considered the home of some of the most diverse plant species in africa that serve as sources of many traditional medicinal plants. Pdf uses of medicinal plants in ethiopia ijar indexing. A proclomation to provide for food, medicine and health care. Traditional and nontraditional medicine i propose to examine similarities and differences between traditional and nontraditional medicine as well as the potential integration of the two. E the institute of development and education for africa idea, inc. Knowledge, attitude, and utilization of traditional.
In the history of medicine, indian, egyptian, chinese, islamic and european scholars and traditions have all added to our knowledge of disease and how to treat it. Eighty percent of the human population and 90% of livestock in ethiopia rely on traditional medicine, as most plants species have shown very effective medicinal value. The decision to study medicine is just the beginning. The genesis of modern medicine in ethiopia was formulated by the thoughts and ideas brought by medical practitioners from ethiopia. Publication of traditional and modern medicine research. Promoting traditional medicine in ethi opia 197 in june 1980, the first national symposium on traditional medicine was held in addis ababa in which representatives of both traditional and modern medicine. Most of these plants are obtained from local sources in the wild by knowledgeable.
Human knowledge of medicine has developed over many centuries and comes from many different parts of the world, including africa. A historical overview of traditional medicine practices. Herbal medicines for the management of diabetic mellitus. Implementation of these priorities requires involvement and commitment of multiple stakeholders across sectors at local and national levels. Relying primarily on field surveys, there have been recent efforts to assess the use of ethiopian traditional medicinal plants for treatment of various diseases including cancer. The contribution of traditional healers clinics to public health care. An estimated 80% of the ethiopian population relies on traditional medicine. On international womens day, the world ywca participated in many exciting and inspiring events. Alemtsehay gave a speech at a side event at the xvi human rights council on violence against children as a result of harmful traditional.
An overview of ethiopian traditional medicinal plants used. In this strategy, only priority and urgent actions are indicated. Download accelerated medicine in ethiopia pdf document. This is often linked to ethnic and cultural diversity coupled with an array of unique flora and fauna that are employed as the primetools in the fight against numerous health problems. The use of traditional medicine is still wide spread in ethiopia, and its acceptability, availability and popularity is no doubt as about 90% of the populations use it for health care needs. However, the arrival of the europeans marked a significant turning point in the history of this agelong tradition and culture.
Some medicinal plant species of ethiopia are reported to have been threatened by the overuse and over harvesting for marketing as medicine. Therefore, this study is aimed at assessing the knowledge, attitude, and practice of traditional medicine among communities in merawi town. Posts about ethiopian traditional medicine written by mayslater. Moreover, this is in agreement with the result of various ethnobotanical researchers elsewhere in ethiopia kebu et al. Ethiopia is endowed with abundant medicinal plant resources and traditional medicinal practices. The history and traditional treatment of smallpox in ethiopia volume 9 issue 4 richard pankhurst skip to main content accesibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Studies on the current knowledge and practices of communities in the era of modern health care expansion are lacking.
This study, conducted in the rural town of fiche in ethiopia, was undertaken with the support of southern cross university scu australia, addis ababa university aau ethiopia, and the. It is noted that there is no single system of traditional medicine in ethiopia, even though themes that are common to the many cultural groups constituting the society have been evolving. I hope to do this by studying the history of medicine, different medical. Predictors of traditional medical practices in illness behavior in. Medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by oromo. In ethiopia up to 80% of the population uses traditional medicine due to the cultural acceptability of healers and local pharmacopeias, the relatively low cost of traditional medicine and difficult access to modern health facilities. Ethiopian people have been using traditional medicine since time immemorial with 80% of its population dependent on traditional medicines. Medicinal plants have been always a complete source of painkillers since early time. Photos 1 the biofarm project, addis ababa, ethiopia. Herbal therapy appears to play a prominent role in ethiopian traditional medicine.
Given the fact that traditional medicine covers a wide and heterogeneous field of health care issues, the approach undertaken in ethiopia implies that other aspects of the traditional practice are. The authors declare that there is no any conflict of interest between authors and other organizations as well. Some common medicinal and poisonous plants used in ethiopian folk medicine by amare getahun, associate professor, faculty of science, addis abeba university, addis abeba, ethiopia. In sidama and ethiopia in general, medicinal plants occupy a crucial place in traditional health care. Herbal medicines for the management of diabetic mellitus in ethiopia and eretria including their phytochemical constituents, asfaw meresa, worku gemechu, h. For example, turmeric is also used as a preservative. Ethiopian food, medicine and healthcare administration and. Ethiopia is considered the home of some of the most diverse. The current status of knowledge of herbal medicine and. June 2002 all images are free to download and use, with the mention. A crosssectional quantitative survey was conducted in gondar, a city located 727 km northwest of ethiopias capital addis ababa at an altitude of. Improving traditionalconventional medicine collaboration. Ethiopia is one of the six centres of biodiversity in the world with several topographies, climatic conditions and various ethnic cultures. Ethiopia is also a country with many languages, beliefs and highly diversified culture.
An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in amaro. A majority of ethiopians rely on traditional medicine as their primary form of health care, yet they are in danger of losing both their knowledge and the plants they have used as medicines for millennia. Medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by ethiopians. The use of medicinal plants as a fundamental component of the african traditional healthcare system is perhaps the oldest and the most assorted of all therapeutic systems. The provision of complete healthcare service by health facilities necessitates the availability of safe, effective and affordable medicines of the. Prior to the introduction of cosmopolitan medicine, traditional medicine used to be the dominant medical system available to millions of people in africa in both rural and urban communities. About 80% of ethiopians depends on traditional medicine for health care and more than 95% of traditional medicinal preparations is of plant origin. In ethiopia, plants have been used as a source of medicine from time immemorial to treat different ailments. Study on actual situation of medicinal plants in ethiopia. Although the expansion of modern medicine appears to influence some aspects of the traditional system, traditional ethiopian medicine remains rooted in magicoreligious beliefs and empirical knowledge from the natural environment.
Traditional medicine in ethiopia includes medicinal preparations from plant, animal, and mineral. Research open access the current status of knowledge of herbal medicine and medicinal plants in fiche, ethiopia elizabeth davigdor1, hans wohlmuth2, zemede asfaw3 and tesfaye awas4 abstract background. List of medical colleges in ethiopia 2019 study medicine. According to dawit 1986, 95% of traditional medicinal preparations are of plant origin. Legal status of traditional medicine and complementaryalternative. A historical overview of traditional medicine practices and policy in ethiopia article pdf available in ethiopian journal of health development 202. The who general guidelines for methodologies on research and evaluation of traditional medicine 2000 provide a strategy for assessing the safety and the efficacy of traditional medicine. Introduction traditional medicine is the ancient and culturebound medical practice which existed in human societies before the application of modern science to health. Traditional medicine has become an integral part of the culture. This diversification contributes to the people of the different localities of the country to develop their own specific knowledge of plant. Download high resolution image jpg 970kb the biofarm project, addis ababa, ethiopia. Traditional medicine refers to the knowledge, skills and practises based on the theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures, used in the maintenance of health and in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness. The wogesha will see you traditional ethiopian medicine. On this page you can read or download accelerated medicine in ethiopia pdf in pdf format.